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Charter school innovation indicators
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| Education policy in the U.S. |
| Public education in the U.S. |
| School choice in the U.S. |
| Charter schools in the U.S. |
| Higher education in the U.S. |
| Glossary of education terms |
| Education statistics |
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Charter school innovation indicators refers to a set of several practices used by charter schools that deviate from standard practice in traditional public schools. Part of the rationale behind charter schools is that with greater freedom comes greater innovation, leading to better academic performance. A wide variety of innovative practices gives students more choices in the type of school that works best for them.
So far, not much research has been done on the performance of charter schools nationwide. Collecting such data is challenging due to the localized nature of education. The research that has been done has typically looked at learning gains in reading and math, measured as days of learning, in charter schools as compared to traditional public schools. Such research has yielded uneven results, with students in some schools gaining significantly more days of learning in reading and math, and students in other schools gaining significantly fewer. According to the Center for Research on Education Outcomes, overall "students attending charter schools have eight additional days of learning in reading and the same days of learning in math per year compared to their peers in traditional public schools."[1][2]
To get a better sense of the level of innovation in charter schools, the National Alliance for Public Charter Schools surveyed charter schools across the country on the various innovative education practices they employed. The survey had about a 30 percent response rate. The table below lists the prevalence of a variety of innovative practices in the 43 states that have charter schools. The data is displayed as a percentage of all charter schools in each state.[1]
| Charter schools with innovative practices, in percents (2011-2012) | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| State | Extended day | Extended year | Year-round calendar | Independent study | School-to-work | Higher education courses | Average |
| Alaska | 33% | 0% | 50% | 33% | 17% | 17% | 25% |
| Arizona | 40% | 15% | 10% | 31% | 13% | 25% | 22% |
| Arkansas | 43% | 36% | 14% | 21% | 7% | 14% | 23% |
| California | 49% | 24% | 6% | 33% | 7% | 22% | 23% |
| Colorado | 45% | 36% | 5% | 29% | 5% | 21% | 24% |
| Connecticut | 62% | 25% | 0% | 13% | 0% | 13% | 19% |
| Delaware | 60% | 20% | 0% | 20% | 20% | 40% | 27% |
| District of Columbia | 76% | 64% | 9% | 15% | 0% | 12% | 29% |
| Florida | 43% | 12% | 4% | 15% | 6% | 15% | 16% |
| Georgia | 59% | 18% | 0% | 18% | 27% | 27% | 25% |
| Hawaii | 27% | 13% | 7% | 13% | 0% | 20% | 13% |
| Idaho | 44% | 22% | 6% | 33% | 22% | 56% | 31% |
| Illinois | 74% | 52% | 4% | 17% | 13% | 9% | 28% |
| Indiana | 63% | 63% | 5% | 11% | 11% | 26% | 30% |
| Iowa | 100% | 100% | 100% | 0% | 100% | 100% | 83% |
| Kansas | 25% | 0% | 0% | 50% | 0% | 50% | 21% |
| Louisiana | 54% | 46% | 13% | 29% | 8% | 13% | 27% |
| Maine | No data available | ||||||
| Maryland | 23% | 0% | 15% | 8% | 8% | 8% | 10% |
| Massachusetts | 62% | 43% | 5% | 33% | 10% | 33% | 31% |
| Michigan | 55% | 23% | 9% | 21% | 5% | 18% | 22% |
| Minnesota | 27% | 20% | 10% | 22% | 13% | 20% | 20% |
| Mississippi | No data available | ||||||
| Missouri | 75% | 53% | 18% | 12% | 0% | 25% | 30% |
| Nevada | 57% | 7% | 7% | 7% | 0% | 7% | 14% |
| New Hampshire | 0% | 0% | 0% | 80% | 40% | 40% | 27% |
| New Jersey | 60% | 36% | 0% | 8% | 0% | 12% | 19% |
| New Mexico | 50% | 32% | 12% | 32% | 27% | 59% | 35% |
| New York | 93% | 57% | 7% | 5% | 11% | 5% | 30% |
| North Carolina | 25% | 15% | 18% | 23% | 13% | 25% | 20% |
| Ohio | 53% | 38% | 13% | 34% | 17% | 15% | 28% |
| Oklahoma | 100% | 43% | 14% | 14% | 29% | 43% | 41% |
| Oregon | 26% | 8% | 2% | 34% | 12% | 32% | 19% |
| Pennsylvania | 57% | 39% | 10% | 26% | 10% | 22% | 27% |
| Rhode Island | 67% | 67% | 0% | 17% | 17% | 17% | 31% |
| South Carolina | 63% | 33% | 15% | 26% | 19% | 19% | 29% |
| Tennessee | 86% | 33% | 14% | 0% | 0% | 0% | 22% |
| Texas | 62% | 36% | 6% | 32% | 16% | 30% | 30% |
| Utah | 27% | 19% | 4% | 27% | 15% | 31% | 21% |
| Virginia | No data available | ||||||
| Washington | No data available | ||||||
| Wisconsin | 35% | 31% | 15% | 40% | 25% | 15% | 27% |
| Wyoming | 33% | 33% | 0% | 33% | 33% | 33% | 28% |
| Source: National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, "The Health of the Public Charter School Movement: A State-By-State Analysis," accessed October 3, 2014 | |||||||
See also
- Charter schools
- School choice in the United States
- Education Policy in the U.S.
- School choice on the ballot
Additional reading
- National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, "The Health of the Public Charter School Movement: A State-By-State Analysis"
- Center for Research on Education Outcomes, "National Charter School Study (2013)"
Footnotes
