Evaluate charter schools against longer-term outcomes such as college enrollment and completion, not only short-term achievement¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · 9 claims (9 for) · 6 studies (4 causal, 2 associational), q2–q3 · 0 of 6 report an effect size · 9 claims rest on one study

Description¶

The brief recommends looking beyond immediate test-score impacts when judging charter schools, examining "if the charter middle schools included in the National Evaluation affected students’ college enrollment and completion." It treats college enrollment and completion as "important longer-term outcomes" and checks whether earlier achievement results predict them. This strategy supports evidence-based school reform decisions.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Requires long-term follow-up data linking students in the evaluation to later college enrollment and completion records

Constraints¶

• In this study, earlier achievement success did not predict college outcome success, so achievement gains alone cannot substitute for longer-term evidence

Target Learners¶

• Middle school students
• Public school students nationally

Target Learning Goals¶

• College enrollment
• College completion
• Academic achievement

Claims¶

• Admission to a charter middle school does not affect college enrollment, per a lottery-based study of 31 charter middle schools [+M]
• KIPP Atlanta Collegiate High School shows positive impacts on long-term college persistence [+W]
• Charter middle school admission did not affect college degree attainment or students' chances of remaining enrolled in college [+W]
• KIPP Atlanta Collegiate High School is associated with higher rates of initial college enrollment [+W]
• Charter middle schools' success in improving college outcomes was not related to their success in improving middle school achievement [+W]
• The estimated KIPP middle school impacts are substantial relative to nationwide racial disparities in college enrollment [+W]
• Charter high school effects on attainment hold in both Chicago and Florida after controlling for prior charter middle school enrollment [+W]
• There was substantial variation among charter high schools on test scores, college enrollment, and college selectivity—more variation than among non-charter schools once incoming characteristics were controlled [+W]
• KIPP middle and high schools had a large, statistically significant combined effect on college graduation rates [+W]

Related Strategies¶

• Future research should examine factors supporting long-term student success beyond measured impacts
• Include both academic and socioemotional outcomes when evaluating school composition effects

Examples¶

-

Key Sources¶

• Kate Place, Philip Gleason. (2019). Do Charter Middle Schools Improve Students' College Outcomes? (Evaluation Brief). Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Evaluation and Regional Assistance. https://ies.ed.gov/ncee/