Monday, January 14, 2013

Stanford: MI charter schools more effective

Just a quick note to promise more analysis later.  I am against charter schools for a wide variety of reasons.  One of them was, until this afternoon, that all evidence indicated that charter schools are less effective than public schools.  This afternoon, I saw a report released today by Stanford University (download page here; click on Michigan).  The conclusion they draw is that Michigan charter schools produce better educational outcomes in students than comparable public schools.  I clearly have my doubts, but it seems likely that the researchers at Stanford would have taken these into account.  More from me after I actually read the report.  I mostly didn't want to feel like I'd neglected information I find inconvenient.

2 comments:

Ray said...

Read the research carefully. Check the national scores of traditional versus charter. When looking at the Michigan scores check the location in the state that the scores are being compared. Interesting information on demographics as well. I also have some question about the demographics that are not answered in the research. Although I scanned the article very quickly. Thanks for sharing.

JohnCosby said...

I agree. I very much believe that the report is more nuanced than the media coverage of it, which is what I actually read. When the semester ends and I get my ducks in a row, I'll have some time to read a nice relaxing education research report.

For the record, even if this report indicates improved scores, I'm still against charter schools as an expensive experiment in privatizing education, which increases "choice" for some students at the expense of opportunity for the students who most need a strong education.