DC Charter School Students Once Again Post Gains on “Nation's Report Card”

Washington, D.C.  —  DC charter school scores on “The Nation’s Report Card” have risen again for the sixth straight year, according to results released Wednesday.

The results show that 4th and 8th grade charter school students are showing improved results in both reading and math, both overall and for virtually every subgroup of students. Additionally, charter school students outperform DC Public Schools in nearly every subgroup of students, including African American students, low-income students and students with disabilities.
 

The information released Wednesday is a deeper look at the 2013 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) results released last month. NAEP tests are given every two years to fourth and eighth grade students across the country. The tests are scored on a scale of 0 to 500 points. Today, more in-depth results were released for 21 cities across the country, a study known as the Trial Urban District Assessment (TUDA).

In the District, charter school students make up nearly 44% of all public school students; therefore their performance illustrates a full picture of academic achievement in the nation’s capital. According to the newly released data:

• In fourth-grade reading, the average scale score for African American students is 204, up 7 points since 2009. Students eligible for free or reduced price meals posted gains of 6 points since 2009 to a scale score of 201. Both results are higher than the state average.
• In fourth-grade math, the average scale score for African American students is 225, up 10 points since 2009. Students eligible for free and reduced price meals are up 12 points to a scale score of 225. Both results are higher than the state average.
• In eighth-grade reading, the average scale score for African American students is 250, up 15 points since 2009. Students eligible for free or reduced price meals posted gains of 4 points to a scale score of 247. Both results are higher than the state average.
• In eighth-grade math, the average scale score for African American students is 269, up 15 points since 2009. Students eligible for free and reduced price meals are up 14 points since 2009. Both results are higher than the state average.

Click here to read more details about the charter school results.

“The NAEP data reinforces many trends we have seen with DC charter schools: that their performance continues to improve, and that they outperform traditional schools with virtually every group of students,” said PCSB executive director Scott Pearson. “I am particularly heartened by the gains shown by our students with disabilities, which in all subjects and grades was faster than the average for all charter students.”
 

“The latest NAEP data clearly demonstrate that DC’s public charter schools are ahead of the curve in education reform in the nation's capital.  African-American, economically-disadvantaged students and students with disabilities enrolled in District charters outscore their peers in D.C.'s traditional public school system, taking us closer to ending the achievement gap," said Robert Cane, executive director of Friends of Choice in Urban Schools (FOCUS).

“Particularly for children of color from impoverished backgrounds, chartered public schools in the District of Columbia are exemplary," said Ramona Edelin, executive director of the D.C. Association of Chartered Public Schools. "They have best practices to share with the nation.  Much can and should be learned from them.”

About PCSB: The DC Public Charter School Board (PCSB) is setting a national model for creating quality public school options through its rigorous review of new charter applications and effective oversight of charter school performance that is leading the transformation of public education in Washington, DC. PCSB oversees 60 public charter schools on 109 campuses serving nearly 37,000 students living in every ward of the city.  Learn more at  dcpcsb.org .

# # #