The Future of Public Education: Exploring the Role of Charter Schools and its Impact on Students

Abstract

As charter schools continue to increase their presence throughout the U.S., there remains a considerable debate over charter schools’ impact on student achievement. Appearing at the end of the 20th century, the push for this new form of education has largely arisen from families who are unsatisfied with their traditional school districts and demand for more school options to accommodate their student’s own unique needs. Charter schools, granted greater autonomy over their curriculums, have been promoted as a better alternative to the traditional district school, particularly in promoting access to higher quality education for students in economically depressed communities. But whether they truly do so is quite nuanced – as well as their impacts on remaining traditional public schools. After juxtaposing the funding structures of charters and district schools to establish background for the debate, this research dives into numerous empirical studies detailing charter school effectiveness on student achievement by comparing the English and Math test scores of students from charter schools against their traditional district school peers. While the results are quite mixed, there does seem to be consistent improvement among “effective” urban charter school and specific charter school networks. If circumstances were to remain, there also arises questions over what policies should be implemented to help expand student access to these effective charter schools. In response, this article considers three recommendations, some already being tested in select cities, for policymakers to consider as the search to promote education equity and access for every student in American cities continues.