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Fact check: Is it true that Detroit public schools outperform Detroit charter schools?
Detroit, Michigan
July 20, 2016
By Terry Phillips
The state of public education in Detroit, Michigan, has been in decline since the late 1950s. Enrollment in Detroit Public Schools (DPS) has plummeted, while enrollment in charter schools has proliferated.[1]
According to a June 28, 2016, New York Times article about the trend, students in “half the charters perform only as well, or worse than, Detroit’s traditional public schools.”[2]
Is that true? Our research finds the claim to be misleading.
Background
Between 2006 and 2015, Michigan’s second-largest city has seen its population decline about 25 percent, from 919,000 to 700,000; however, the drop in Detroit's traditional public school enrollment has been far greater. During that same period, the DPS student population went from 117,000 to 47,000—a drop of about 60 percent.[3] By contrast, charter enrollment has increased by 79 percent, from about 29,000 in the 2006-2007 academic year to more than 52,000 in 2014-2015, according to the nonprofit National Alliance for Public Charter Schools.[4]
The Detroit city government declared bankruptcy in 2013 and emerged from that status on November 7, 2014.[5] A 2010-2015 U.S. Census Bureau report showed more than 39 percent of people in the Motor City living below the poverty line.[6]
The U.S. Department of Education produces the Trial Urban District Assessment (TUDA), a biennial report that compares fourth- and eighth-grade math and reading levels in 21 big-city school districts. Since 2009 (the first year Detroit participated in TUDA), this report has consistently ranked the city’s public school students lowest among the districts studied.[7][8]
Many parents moved their children out of traditional public schools and into charters. Detroit has the second-highest percentage of public charter school students in the United States. Of the city's 99,000 students, 53 percent were enrolled in charter schools in the 2014-2015 academic year. That compares to 20 percent in 2006-2007.[4] The only American city with a higher percentage is New Orleans, largely because Hurricane Katrina destroyed the public school system there.[9]
Michigan authorized charter schools in 1993, but after 1998 it imposed a cap, mandating that only 150 charter schools could be authorized by state universities (the most common method of authorizing charter schools).[10] The legislature voted to remove that cap in 2011.[11] Each of these schools is overseen by its authorizing entity, represented by the Michigan Council of Charter School Authorizers—a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization responsible for setting standards and accountability for charter schools.[12]
The claim
The Times story quotes three parents who expressed disappointment following the switch from traditional public to charter schools. They said that their students were either unable to keep up with new classes or that they got even less education than in the traditional public schools. The Times claims that students in “half the charters perform only as well, or worse than, Detroit’s traditional public schools.”[2]
Determining the effectiveness of any school involves many complex matters. The Times claim is based in part on TUDA data. However, that assessment focuses exclusively on mathematics and reading scores. Results also include some demographic information. The report does not take into account other factors known to have major effects on educational performance, such as poverty levels, parental education, teacher training, or crime rates.
The Times also cited a report from Stanford University's Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) to claim that students in one Detroit charter, the Cesar Chavez Academy, grew less academically than students in the neighboring traditional public school. But unlike the Times story, the CREDO report points out that more than 75 percent of students at the Chavez Academy were living in poverty, and "students in poverty on average have growth which is weaker than non-poverty students" no matter where they enroll.[13][14]
The CREDO study found that Detroit charter schools had more students in poverty than their traditional public school counterparts (70 percent versus 43 percent).
Taking poverty into account, the CREDO data show that 50 percent of charter schools are equal in performance to traditional public schools. Only a handful of charters were underperforming compared to traditional public schools. For example, only 1 percent of charter students underperform DPS in reading scores. In fact, Detroit charters are among the top performers compared to traditional public schools in the CREDO study.[15]
Conclusion
A New York Times article on June 28, 2016, claimed that students in “half the charters perform only as well, or worse than, Detroit’s traditional public schools.” But the Times claim relies on limited data that fails to account for some of the most important factors in educational performance. A more robust study concluded that students enrolled in Detroit charters had higher average learning gains than students elsewhere, even when they were poorer. That is demonstrated in part by the fact that "charter students in Detroit gain over three months per year more than their counterparts at traditional public schools."[13]
Therefore, the claim is misleading.
See also
Launched in October 2015 and active through October 2018, Fact Check by Ballotpedia examined claims made by elected officials, political appointees, and political candidates at the federal, state, and local levels. We evaluated claims made by politicians of all backgrounds and affiliations, subjecting them to the same objective and neutral examination process. As of 2025, Ballotpedia staff periodically review these articles to revaluate and reaffirm our conclusions. Please email us with questions, comments, or concerns about these articles. To learn more about fact-checking, click here.
Sources and Notes
- ↑ The Detroit News, "Sharp drop for public school enrollment in Detroit," May 29, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 The New York Times, "A Sea of Charter Schools in Detroit Leaves Students Adrift," June 28, 2016
- ↑ Detroit Public Schools, "Detroit Public Schools—Strategic Planning presentation," accessed July 19, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, "A Growing Movement: America's Largest Charter School Communities, Tenth Annual Edition, November 2015," accessed July 7, 2016
- ↑ Governing, "Judge Clears Detroit's Way for Exiting Historic Bankruptcy," November 7, 2014
- ↑ U.S. Census Bureau, "Welcome to Quick Facts," accessed July 20, 2016
- ↑ Detroit News, "Detroit worst in math, reading scores among big cities," October 28, 2015
- ↑ National Center for Educational Statistics, "National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP)," accessed July 12, 2016
- ↑ The Washington Post, “Katrina swept away New Orleans’ school system, ushering in new era,” September 3, 2015
- ↑ Michigan Legislature, "The Revised School code (Excerpt)," accessed July 13, 2016
- ↑ Michigan Legislature, "Senate Bill 0618 (2011)," accessed July 13, 2016
- ↑ Michigan Council of Charter School Authorizers, "Who are we?" accessed July 13, 2016
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Center for Research on Education Outcomes, "Charter School Growth and Replication," accessed July 13, 2016
- ↑ Center for Research on Education Outcomes, "Charter School Performance in Michigan," accessed July 13, 2016
- ↑ National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, "Estimated Number of Public Charter Schools & Students, 2014-2015," accessed July 13, 2016
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