Study: Public school students make gains when school choice expands | Eastern NC Now

    Publisher's Note: This post appears here courtesy of the Carolina Journal. The author of this post is David Bass.

    A new study shows that scaling school choice is more cost-effective in improving public school student performance than simply increasing spending on public schools. The research could have implications for North Carolina's own school choice infrastructure, which recently became universally available to all families regardless of income.

    The report, which analyzes Florida's school choice landscape, runs counter to the common criticism from opponents of school choice, who often claim that support for educational alternatives takes funding from public schools.

    In a recent statement, NC House Minority Leader Robert Reives, D-Chatham, echoed that sentiment, arguing that the voucher "siphons money away from public schools" and is "irresponsible governance."

    "Republican leadership is engaged in a reverse Robin Hood scheme," Reives said.

    While critics argue the funding loss hurts students, new research suggests the resulting competition actually spurs academic growth. Patrick Graff, a senior fellow at the American Federation for Children, a school choice advocacy group, found that public school students in areas with higher levels of competition from school choice programs show broad and growing benefits, including higher reading and math test scores and lower rates of suspensions and absences.

    Graff's research - which is a synthesis of multiple studies - found that the competitive effects of school choice in Florida yielded the same improvement as traditional spending on public schools at a fraction of the cost. After 15 years, Florida students were an additional 120 days of learning ahead - equivalent to roughly two-thirds of a school year - with even greater gains for low-income students. The research also showed that these competitive effects amplified as the program scaled.

    Achieving the same academic gains through increased traditional public school spending in Florida would have cost $31.8 billion over 15 years, according to the research. In contrast, Florida's Tax Credit Scholarship Program delivered these benefits for $2.8 billion, making it 11 times more cost-effective.

    "How money is spent matters a great deal more than how much," Graff told Carolina Journal in an interview.

    Dr. Robert Luebke, director of the Center for Effective Education at the John Locke Foundation, called the research on Florida's approach "inspiring."

    "Policymakers in other states wondering how to allocate resources should reconsider school choice," Luebke said. "As the research suggests, school choice should be thought of not only as a way to create options for students, but also a major intervention to a system that can improve outcomes for all students."

    Graff cautioned that a direct, one-to-one comparison between Florida and North Carolina was challenging, and a specific analysis of the Opportunity Scholarship Program would be needed in the Tar Heel State, especially after the expansion to a universal program beginning with the 2024-2025 school year.


    But Graff added that the bottom line idea is that competition can serve as an effective mechanism to improve public schools.

    "If you're a public school advocate, you should think about school choice as another mechanism to improve public schools," he said.

poll#201

Considering what real news is available for all to witness, and in great specificity, should one pursue what is true outside of the channeled realm of the corrupt corporate /legacy media, and: Is Institutionalized Corruption real, and is it a hindrance to sustaining our Constitutional Republic now, and for future generations of American citizens?

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poll#218

Now that President Trump is picking his cabinet and immediate staff to insulate him from the poor judgement of the Bureaucratic Class, while moving quickly to transition this Constitutional Republic unto a wise and sustainable direction: What is your immediate impression as to how our nation will prosper?

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  This is a time where critical days lay ahead, where only wise and responsible decisions must be made to sustain US.

  I generally do not pay attention, but expect only the best to occur ... and that is what I always expect.

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