Comments on: Drop Charter Reform Strategy: Chicago’s Public School Students Outlearn Students from Charters

By: Troy LaRaviere

Troy LaRaviere — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 18:00:37 +0000

It’s coming.

By: Anyon

Anyon — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 17:53:51 +0000

Troy- can you take your energy and enthusiasm into the education funding space (and maybe you have) and fight that fight right now which is so critical?

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By: Troy LaRaviere

Troy LaRaviere — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 05:14:27 +0000

Hello Lori.

1. I appears that you didn’t read the article. If you actually read it instead of just looking at a list, you would know I included AUSL turnaround schools because they–along with charters–are a part of this administration’s education agenda. I asked the question in paragraph 9, “How did Emanuel’s reform schools do?” The point is that both of this administrations so-called solutions–Charters and Turnarounds–are only making things worse.

2. If you had done your “homework” on me, you’d know that I am more than familiar with the AUSL model because I was once an AUSL administrator, having led one of its more successful turnarounds (with Alice Henry). When we took over Johnson Elementary School in 2009 40% of students were meeting state standards. Two years later–with the same population of students–that number was over 60%. After I left, CPS threw all of that progress into turmoil not once but twice, making Johnson a so-called “welcoming” school in two successive years when it closed nearby Lathrop in 2012, and Pope in 2013. As I stated in the article you didn’t appear to read, there are some charters and turnarounds that are exceptions to the overall trend of poor student growth, but exceptions don’t make good school systems: critical mass does. Charters and Turnarounds have not created that critical mass, but traditional public schools have. Lastly, although AUSL schools are indeed still public neighborhood schools, they–like charters–are run by a private operator.

It looks like someone certainly needs to do her homework, but that someone isn’t me.

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By: Lori

Lori — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 02:57:14 +0000

You include the AUSL turnaround schools in the “charter list.” Those are CPS schools, run and funded by CPS, abiding by all CPS policies, district-wide testing, the Student Code of Conduct, etc. AUSL provides instructional coaches (rather than ISLs) and some additional PD opportunities, but they are nothing like Charter schools. Do your homework on the AUSL model and network.

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By: Troy LaRaviere

Troy LaRaviere — Mon, 23 May 2016 00:31:55 +0000

In essence, you get what you pay for.

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By: KTL

KTL — Sun, 22 May 2016 21:07:18 +0000

Thanks for this great analysis. It seems to me like the obvious follow-up question is, “Why?” What are the qualitative reasons for these statistical trends, and how can we learn from whatever mistakes are being made right now in failing charters?

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By: Nancy Hill

Nancy Hill — Sun, 22 May 2016 19:46:14 +0000

Great article. You speak the truth. We need to all get behind Mr. Troy Laraviere.

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By: Nancy Hill

Nancy Hill — Sun, 22 May 2016 19:39:59 +0000

I’ve never liked charter schools. Schools for profit are no better then prisons for profit. The bottom line is more important then the education of the student. Wrong focus. The article is enlightening. Taxes pay for our schools. Replace the charters with CPS. Parents and students deserve no less.

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By: Troy LaRaviere

Troy LaRaviere — Sat, 21 May 2016 20:20:33 +0000

Comparable growth data does not exist. They have something they tout as equivalent but it does not control for beginning test score. If we were able to look act EPAS growth in a way that controls for the beginning test score a student has and compares them only with other students that started at that same test score then we would have a reliable comparison. Right now they just look at total growth which favors schools that start off with students who began with higher test scores because they grow more due to to lack of a curriculum in high schools tailored to low scoring student who are still struggling to master basic elementary concepts. They tend not to grow because high schools don’t have the kind of curriculum that’s designed for their level of functioning.

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By: missshoward

missshoward — Sat, 21 May 2016 18:16:08 +0000

Troy, have you been able to do a similar comparison for high schools?

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