The Politics of Education and How Charter Schools Impact Student Achievement

Undergraduate Honors Thesis

Citations

Citeable URL: https://scholar.colorado.edu/concern/undergraduate_honors_theses/d217qq54w

Abstract

Charter Schools run by private citizens or organizations have been under the political spotlight ever since their inception in 1991. The educational issue of charter schools is highly politicized with some politicians calling for an end to charters all together. Although the idea of charter schools has spread to 44 states each state and district has different rules and regulations for the schools. Additionally, the impacts of charter schools on student achievement is not necessarily clear. This thesis attempts to examine how charter schools influence student achievement through a statistical analysis as well as a case study analysis. The statistical analysis takes graduation rates as well as test scores into account when determining the impact of charter schools. The case studies look at high performing and low performing districts to determine similarities and differences between them, specifically concerning charter schools. This paper reveals the nuance behind charter schools and education policy. Although charter schools as a monolith do not seem to have an influence on their own, each charter school is different and the type of education a charter school provides may be impactful.

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