“Critics have long questioned whether school choice improves student achievement”

Will Flanders and Scott Niederjohn:

Studies conducted over several decades have produced varying results. But new research suggests that some of that inconsistency may come from measuring the effects too soon. If we are going to judge school choice fairly, we need to give students enough time to benefit from it. That’s the central finding of new peer-reviewed research we co-authored examining the effectiveness of Wisconsin’s private school choice programs that shows significant additional growth in reading relative to public schools across all three programs.

Our research shows school choice benefits students over time

This research, published July 7 in the Journal of School Choice, represents the first ever student-level analysis of the Wisconsin and Racine Parental choice programs. Using data collected from the Department of Public Instruction, we matched students in the choice program with similar students in public schools.

Here’s what we found. Across the Milwaukee and statewide programs, the amount of time that a student participated in the choice program mattered. Students who participated for only one year generally showed little measurable difference from similar public school students. But students who remained in school choice for multiple years experienced significantly stronger growth in reading achievement.