Working Paper: NBER ID: w17494
Authors: Roland G. Fryer Jr.
Abstract: We implemented five strategies gleaned from practices in achievement-increasing charter schools - increased instructional time, a more rigorous approach to building human capital of teachers and administrators, high-dosage tutoring, frequent use of data to inform instruction, and a culture of high expectations - in twenty of the lowest performing schools in Houston, Texas. We show that the average impact of these changes on student achievement is 0.206 standard deviations in math and 0.043 standard deviations in reading, per year, which is comparable to reported impacts of attending high-performing charter schools. This suggests that the best practices of charter schools may be general lessons about the education production function.
Keywords: charter schools; public schools; student achievement; field experiment; education reform
JEL Codes: H0; I2; I21; J0; K0
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| Charter school practices (I28) | Student achievement in traditional public schools (I21) |
| Charter school practices (I28) | Math achievement (C02) |
| Charter school practices (I28) | Reading achievement (I24) |
| Charter school practices (I28) | Attendance (Y20) |
| Hispanic students (I24) | Gains in student achievement (I24) |
| Economically disadvantaged students (I24) | Gains in student achievement (I24) |
| Charter school practices (I28) | Low-performing schools (I24) |
| Treatment schools in Houston (I23) | Rank in NYC charter schools (Y10) |
| Charter school practices (I28) | Heterogeneous treatment effects (C21) |