Are low-performing students more likely to exit charter schools? Evidence from New York City and Denver, Colorado. (February 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Winters, Marcus A.; Clayton, Grant; Carpenter, Dick M.
• Is Part Of: Economics of education review. Volume 56(2017:Feb.)
• Page Start: 110
• Page End: 117
• Publication Date: 2017-02
• Subjects: I20 -- I28; Educational economics -- School choice -- Charter schools; Education -- Economic aspects -- Periodicals; 370
• DOI: 10.1016/j.econedurev.2016.12.002
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0272-7757

Abstract

Highlights: We compare exiting behavior of students in charter and traditional public schools. We use data from two urban systems: Denver and New York City. Low performers are more likely than higher performers to exit charters. Low-performing students are equally likely to exit charter and public schools. Abstract: A common criticism of charter schools is that they systematically remove or "counsel out" their lowest performing students. However, relatively little is currently known about whether low-performing students are in fact more likely to exit charter schools than surrounding traditional public schools. We use longitudinal student-level data from two large urban school systems that prior research has found to have effective charter school sectors–New York City and Denver, Colorado–to evaluate whether there is a differential relationship between low-performance on standardized test scores and the probability that students exit their schools by sector attended. We find no evidence of a differential relationship between prior performance and the likelihood of exiting a school by sector. Low-performing students in both cities are either equally likely or less likely to exit their schools than are student in traditional public schools.