Researchers tell congressional subcommittee that public charter schools are benefiting students and nearby traditional public schools

Image of a school chalkboard (Photo by MART PRODUCTION/Pexels)

Thomas B. Fordham Institute Associate Director of Research David Griffith told members of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Early Childhood, Elementary, and Secondary Education that research shows public charter schools are producing results even beyond their school doors.

Griffith joined other charter researchers and leaders on a panel before the congressional subcommittee Wednesday morning to discuss the impact studies have found charters are having nationwide and correct misconceptions.

David Griffith ( Photo by the Thomas B. Fordham Institute)

“Collectively, these studies paint a clear picture. High-quality charter schools can produce meaningful systemwide benefits for students,” said Griffith. “Critics of charter schools often claim that they harm traditional school districts, yet research by the Fordham Institute and others suggest that districts' revenues per pupil often increase as the charter market share rises due to so-called ‘hold harmless’ policies.”

Charter schools are free public schools operated by an organization under a ‘charter’ with a school district or a state. In Tennessee, charters must be operated by a non-profit organization, and the concept is designed to provide the schools with increased flexibility in exchange for increased accountability.

Griffith says he’s been a part of more than a dozen charter studies in the past decade, and that research has additionally found evidence that charters improve the performance of the local school district they operate in. He says the Fordham Institute in particular looked at how charter enrollment impacted all students and found that competition from charters was a benefit as more children attended them.

“The results suggest that these enrollment increases are linked to systemwide gains in both reading and math achievement by the end of middle school, especially in urban areas and for traditionally disadvantaged students,” said Griffith. “Charter schools are not a silver bullet, but they have demonstrated their ability to raise student achievement and improve public education systems.”

Charter School Growth Fund President Daryl Cobb made a similar case about what charter research has found, discussing the recent study from Stanford University’s Center for Research on Educational Outcomes (CREDO) that reported public charter school students in Tennessee achieved the equivalent of an additional 34 days of reading instruction and 39 days of math in a given year compared to their traditional public school peers.

Darryl Cobb (Photo by the Charter School Growth Fund)

“It is clear that charter schools lift the tide for all students,” said Cobb. “Students from traditionally underserved backgrounds have benefitted the most from the innovations and the hard work of leaders founding charter schools.

The subcommittee held Wednesday’s hearing as Congress is considering the newly filed High Quality Charter Schools Act designed to increase the number of charter schools through a new tax credit.

Legislative co-sponsor and subcommittee Chair Representative Kevin Kiley, R-California, made the case that the legislative efforts are needed to push back against opponents of public charter schools who frequently make the case that they hurt traditional public schools.

“The goal is clear, protect a failing monopoly by eliminating competition. Instead of replicating what works, politicians in California and other states are punishing success and students are paying the price,” Kiley.

Multiple Democrats on the subcommittee questioned the validity of research that’s shown public charter school students outperforming their traditional school peers, including Representative Suzanne Bonamici, D-Oregon. She who raised the possibility that charter school students might be doing better than traditional public-school students because their parents are more involved in their schooling.

“We know that parental involvement contributes to student success, and some charter schools actually require or mandate parental involvement,” said Bonamici. “Could it be the parental involvement rather than charter school model that makes a difference?”

Cobb responded by saying parental involvement is actually a key part of the school model for many charter schools.

“I think charter schools are intentional about creating more paths for parents to be involved in their student’s education,” said Cobb. “Many of the schools we work with they go out of their way to create a multiple pathway model for parents to be involved.”