The Truth About “School Choice”

A relative handful of higher-performing charter schools plays an important role in education for some Ohio children and families. But research and analysis on school privatization in Ohio calls into question the very solutions being advocated as part of School Choice Week.

Privatization advocates ignore evidence

National School Choice Week, the brainchild of corporations and conservative groups like the American Legislative Exchange Council and the Heritage Foundation, kicked off on January 25 as a celebration to “shine a spotlight on effective education options for every child” with events planned in Ohio and nationally. What advocates for the privatization of public schools won’t be able to demonstrate, however, is meaningful evidence that their approach really does “provide an essential and beneficial solution for parents across the country.” A relative handful of higher-performing charter schools clearly plays an important role in education for some Ohio children and families. But Ohio’s approach to charters and vouchers, which has emphasized quantity over quality, has hurt the movement here. Research and analysis of school privatization in Ohio calls into question the very solutions being advocated as part of School Choice Week. That research clearly shows that charters and vouchers have not helped strengthen a public education system that works for all Ohioans.

Charter schools

Evidence on the quality of charter schools presents a troubling picture. Stanford University’s Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) and the Rand Corporation have studied the academic achievement of charters across multiple states, including Ohio, and found mixed results. CREDO found that only 17 percent of charter schools outgained their traditional public school counterparts; students in Ohio’s charter schools performed significantly below their public school peers in math, showed no difference in reading, and had an initial loss of learning in both subjects, which continued in math well after the first year.

According to an analysis of Ohio’s 2011-12 achievement test scores, charter schools continue to struggle with only 6 percent meeting the state goal of having a performance index over 100 and only 10 percent rating excellent or above. Furthermore, a 2009 analysis of scores on Ohio’s Kindergarten Readiness Assessment