Charter schools: Mythbusters and the role of the authorizer
Q & A: Brian Edwards, Ed Source
Published: October 21, 2008
Charter schools: Mythbusters and the role of the authorizer
Wednesday, December 3, San Diego Convention Center
9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. | Registration opens at 7:00 a.m.
Whether you are experienced authorizers or have yet had a charter petition, leading experts will provide the information you need to make good student-centered decisions. Explore recent decisions made by the CA State Board of Education and how it affects the authorizer’s role, how to properly analyze a charter petition, conditions for renewal and the newly revised revocation and appeals process. Register for the symposium today.
Q & A with Brian Edwards, Edsource
Brian Edwards and colleague Eric Crane, Senior Research Associate at WestEd will present research findings from the recent EdSource publication California’s Charter Schools: 2008 Performance Update. Brian is a Senior Policy Analyst at EdSource; he is responsible for monitoring and analyzing state and federal policy action; overseeing select data analyses; publication research, writing, and project management; and representing EdSource on advisory committees for research and evaluation projects.
Q. What is the main conclusion of EdSource's recent research, the California's Charter Schools: 2008 Performance Update?
A. Like "regular" public schools, charter schools in California have a range of performance levels. However, some clear patterns have emerged in EdSource's analyses. After controlling for school size and student demographics, charter elementary schools have recently achieved lower API scores than regular public schools while charter middle and high schools have earned higher scores. Within the charter community, classroom-based charters, and those run by charter management organizations, generally score substantially higher than their counterparts.
Q. When charter schools perform better than public schools, what are the reasons?
A. EdSource has done rigorous analyses of performance data, but we have not conducted interviews, surveys, or classroom observations to explore the reasons behind the differences in performance.
Q. How would you suggest districts use your research?
A. Districts could use our research in conjunction with their intimate knowledge of their local circumstances, student populations, and policies to understand the reasons why charters in their area perform the way they do.
Q. Are California's charter schools performing better than other states?
A. EdSource has not looked at that issue. It's an interesting--but complex--one. Charter policies and academic assessments vary substantially from state to state; comparing charter performance among states would thus be challenging.
Q. Is there anything else you would want board members and superintendents know about this research and what they can look forward to at the symposium on Wednesday, December 3?
A. We think our findings, along with discussion from fellow panelists, will provide food for thought as board members and superintendents wrestle with questions about improving student achievement and the role of the central office and school autonomy.