A new national study examines how English language learner (ELL) students are doing in charter schools and identifies a set of practices common to the schools where they are performing best.
Charter schools serve a growing share of ELL students across the country, but national research on how well those students are doing in charter schools has been limited. In a new study, researchers use federal student achievement data to compare ELL outcomes in charter and district schools, both nationally and by state, in 2018-19 and 2021-22.
At the national level, ELL students in charter schools outperformed their peers in both reading and math across both years.
The advantage was particularly strong in reading, holding steady from before the pandemic through 2021-22. In math, the advantage was smaller and narrowed in 2021-22, consistent with the pandemic’s outsized impact on math achievement nationally.
At the state level, large and consistent charter advantages for ELL students showed up in several states, including Rhode Island, Nevada, Florida and North Carolina.
Researchers set out to answer an important question: what are the charter schools that are serving ELL students well actually doing?
Their analysis identified several common features among schools with strong outcomes, including:
- Strong focus on challenging academic content,
- Instruction tailored to individual students,
- Close and ongoing engagement with families, and
- Regular use of student performance data to drive continuous improvement.
Across the country, charter schools are meeting the needs of ELL students by focusing on the practices that drive consistent and measurable success.
For families looking for a public school where their child will thrive, that matters.
