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Setting a New Standard in Standardized Testing

 

June 23, 2022

A recent study out of Stanford University’s Center for Research on Education Outcomes (CREDO) found that students who attended charter schools in Indiana outperformed their peers in traditional public districts in both reading and math. This was especially true when comparing Black and Hispanic student performance, as well as low-income and English language learners. 

 "We are pleased to see that what we are doing at Herron Classical Schools has resulted in positive gains for our students. I am proud of our educators,” said President Janet McNeal. “However, as one of our core values states, we believe that every student is a scholar and we know there is still work to do. We will never be fully satisfied until all of our scholars are performing at their highest potential.”


The study used 2018-19, pre-pandemic data and noted that “charter school students learned the equivalent of 64 more days of instruction in reading and 116 days in math, compared to their district school peers.” See charts below for a comparison based on the most recent INview (Indiana State) data: SY2020-21. According to the data as encapsulated by Director of Accountability, Austin Hauser, Herron High School outperformed IPS and the state on all metrics - four year graduation rate, percent of honors diplomas, ELA and Math proficiency, and SAT College Career Readiness Benchmark. Herron-Riverside High School did not yet have SAT or graduation metrics, but did outperform the IPS and the state on their proficiency metrics for both ELA and Math.

 

 

Another Stanford CREDO study revealed that charter schools led the pack when it came to transitioning to online learning during the pandemic versus other public school districts. Herron Classical Schools barely missed a beat. The 2021 ISTEP scores attest to that:   

  • For English/Language Arts, both Herron and Herron-Riverside High Schools outperformed state pass rates for all demographic groups shown.

  • For Math and “Both”, Herron outperformed state pass rates for all groups, and Herron-Riverside outperformed the state in all but students who were on paid lunch versus free/reduced lunch status.  

  • For Math black students at Herron-Riverside outperformed black students on the same test at Herron.

 

Read the full feature on Yahoo! News here: "In Indianapolis, Charter Schools ‘Move the Needle’ on Achievement, Study Finds"