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25 Jan 2017
Brief

Identifying South Carolina Charter Schools That Are “Beating the Odds”

Mark A. Partridge, Florida State University
Zena Rudo, AIR
Sarah Herrera, Florida State University

Charter schools have become a widely used alternative to traditional public schools, both nationally and in the Regional Educational Laboratory (REL) Southeast Region. They play an increasingly important role in state reform efforts. South Carolina stakeholders wanted to broaden their understanding of why some charter schools are more successful than others to inform their consideration of whether to expand this school choice option. This study identifies charter schools that are “beating the odds,” or performing better than expected given the demographic characteristics of the students they serve.

The study team worked in partnership with South Carolina Department of Education research personnel to develop a statistical model that identifies charter schools that are beating the odds. The study was designed as a first step in comparing practices and policies and developing learning communities in South Carolina charter schools.

The study was guided by asking, "Which South Carolina charter schools are beating the odds, or performing better than expected on the Palmetto Assessment of State Standards in math and language arts?"

Key Findings

  • Of the 33 South Carolina charter schools serving students in any of grades 3–5, 13 (39 percent) were found to be beating the odds in both math and English language arts. One additional charter school was found to be beating the odds in math only.
  • Of the 35 South Carolina charter schools serving students in any of grades 6–8, 9 (26 percent) were found to be beating the odds in both math and English language arts.
  • Three additional schools were found to be beating the odds in English language arts only.
  • Charter schools that were identified as beating the odds were not notably different in observable characteristics from charter schools that were not identified.
PDF icon Identifying South Carolina Charter Schools That Are “Beating the Odds” (PDF)

Related Projects

Project

Regional Educational Laboratory Southeast (REL Southeast)

The states in REL Southeast's region include schools in rural, suburban, and urban settings which face high poverty, growing populations of English learners, and low graduation rates. At the same time, states are committed to meeting the challenge of higher student standards.

Related Work

30 Nov 2016
Brief

Leadership Characteristics and Practices in South Carolina Charter Schools

Charter school stakeholders in South Carolina expressed interest in understanding the leadership characteristics and practices of charter school leaders across the state. Regional Educational Laboratory Southeast helped develop an online survey of characteristics and practices that was administered by the South Carolina Department of Education to leaders of all charter schools in South Carolina. This report describes the process for developing the leadership survey and provides descriptive results of the survey.
Topic: 
Education, Charter Schools and School Choice, District and School Improvement

Further Reading

  • Leadership Characteristics and Practices in South Carolina Charter Schools
  • ESSA │Charter Schools and School Choice
  • How Methodology Decisions Affect the Variability of Schools Identified as Beating the Odds
  • Successful California Schools in the Context of Educational Adequacy
  • How Methodology Decisions Affect the Variability of Schools Identified as Beating the Odds
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Topic

Education
Charter Schools and School Choice
District and School Improvement

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