Most charter school students in suburban Boston performed better on last spring’s MCAS tests compared with students in other, traditional schools in their hometowns, but some are struggling in math, according to the latest batch of test scores.
The Globe reviewed seventh-, eighth-, and 10th-grade MCAS proficiency rates in English and math from 20 charter schools in cities and towns across Greater Boston. Most charter schools did better overall than the community in which they are based.
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One of the things that struck me when I looked at the recent MCAS data released by Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, was how small the classes of 10th graders are in the Charter schools, compared to regular, public high school. Too small to really entitle them to claim the scale and scope of success contained in the article and their advocates' statements.
Class size in charter schools shrink a great deal over time. They dismiss their students in higher numbers at two distinct times during the school year. In the fall, its after their funding for the student has been obtained in full. In the spring, its just before the MCAS testing. So, they take the money from the local district, then send their underachieving students back to the local district for MCAS testing, and inclusion in the local district's DESE data. The charter's scores go up, they keep the money for the whole year, and they look better - than the local district that they claim to be "outpacing."
A charter school advocate calls Glenn Koocher's well founded claims that charters cherry-pick, and don't have their proportionate share of high needs special education students "tired". Spokesman Slowey must be tired of hearing the facts that remain true, no matter how much the charters sugar coat their message and massage the numbers.
Charters do not take in new students when students leave. So, even if they are not unfairly selective to start, (which is a dubious claim) they become more selective over time, as students that don't fit their model leave - or are disciplined out. Public schools, where the students that leave to back to, are not able to do that.
For the charters to truly "outpace others" they need to keep their enrollment numbers up, accept and retain a proportional number of high needs special education students and recruit and retain ELL students. Until then, their claims of outpacing district shools are themselves, "tired."
The unfair funding formula for the charters also needs to reformed. But that might be the subject of another Globe article.
This is bad reporting. The columnist fails to point out that another charter school in Lawrence actually did better that Community Day in both 8th grade math and ELA. In fact, the article's table of statistics doesn't even mention what city the Lawrence Family Development Charter School is from- althought one would think the name would give it away. Nor does the the column mention the fact that Lawrence Family Develipment Charter School was also a Level one school with TWO commendations for narrowing achievent gap and high growth. If Ms. Kocian had done her research she would have discovered these facts to help her case- but after reading this she clearly seems bias in and ignorant of the whole charter school movement story.
I would like to read this article but only the headline displays (no story below). I'm a home delivery subscriber in Cambridge -- why can't I read this article online when I'm signed in?
no article, but this just in: Charter school students outperform peers on MCAS due to the fact that charter schools cream. Public Schools teach all children.
columwhyte, not to diminish your point in general, but just to clarify for those who aren't aware: Charter schools ARE public schools. Many don't realize that.
Over the years I have come to realize that parents should send their children where ever they want. If they don't like public schools they will send that message to their children and it will affect the success of the student. In your analysis it would be enlightening to know just how many students are tested, how many students left the school during the year and returned to public alternatives, and how many special needs students were in these highly proficient classes. This data is available and would clarify claims like "did better overall"
If 20 children are tested from a class that lost four special needs students who returned to their local public school and the remaining 16 students did well, what does that prove? Using demographics, i.e. income, race, education, answers nothing. Being poor does not mean you won't do well. It means some succeed and some don't. When charter schools have to KEEP everyone, not counsel problem learners out, then there is something to talk about.