When Quality Means We Can Get Better, Faster
By Kevin Hesla, Director of Data Strategy, Colorado League of Charter Schools
We can say quality in numerous ways in the world of education. We can talk about measurements and assessments. We can talk about qualitative and quantitative data. We can also look at a number of different factors including school climate and performance and student outcomes and engagement.
Some things stand out, though. As a research analyst and self-proclaimed data nerd, I love to find the valuable nuggets that are sometimes hidden in a research paper. And a recent report by the Keystone Policy Center contains a number of important and interesting findings.
The report is important overall because it shows all the ways that charter schools are creating real opportunities and moving the performance curve on CMAS, P/SAT, and SPF rankings. But it also examines other facets of how charter schools can be role models for other public schools to improve performance for each and every student, especially those who have historically been underserved. And this is why we work in education, right?
It’s important, so I’ll give you this whole paragraph. Specifically, the authors note that the charter sector exhibits strong evidence of substantial accountability and substantial improvement over time.
School Improvement: In understanding how to improve academic outcomes and opportunities for students in Colorado, it is important to look not only at current performance but how schools that were previously underperforming have been addressed over time. This can ensure that students are not languishing in underperforming schools for many years, impacting their long-term ability to succeed. When looking at schools that were rated as “Turnaround” or “Priority Improvement” on the SPF in prior years, charter schools are consistently either higher performing or no longer in operation when compared to non-charters. This is likely a direct result of both the self-regulating nature of the charter sector and their autonomy to make shifts in programs quickly to address deficiencies. Of Red or Orange charter schools on the 2019 SPF, over 50% were green in 2024—an improvement of two or three performance bands—compared to only 23% of non-charters. Similar trends exist when looking at the 2024 SPF ratings of schools that were Red or Orange in 2016. This demonstrates that even when charter schools run into academic challenges, they are more able to utilize their autonomy to make programmatic shifts leading to improvements in academic performance.
I added the bold emphasis in the middle because that’s the bit that we have to pay attention to. We have to start thinking about how to shift entire schools, entire networks, entire districts, and entire states if we’re ever going to crack the code on improving public education in the U.S. There are lots of means to this end, but we’re seeing clearly one means to this end here in Colorado. Charter schools are better able to more nimbly improve by two or three performance bands at over twice the rate of non-charter schools.
