Insufficient Accountability? Heterogeneous Effects of Charter Schools Across Authorizing Agencies

We estimate the longitudinal effects of charter schools authorized by different authorizing bodies on student achievement by using student-level data from Indiana. The results of our analysis point to substantial variation, especially between the state’s two largest authorizers: Ball State Universit...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:American educational research journal 2023-08, Vol.60 (4), p.696-734
Main Authors: Ferrare, Joseph J., Waddington, R. Joseph, Fitzpatrick, Brian R., Berends, Mark
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Academic Achievement
Accountability
Charter Schools
Governance
Governing Boards
Nonprofit Organizations
Outcomes of Education
Quasi-experimental methods
School Administration
School Effectiveness
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Summary:We estimate the longitudinal effects of charter schools authorized by different authorizing bodies on student achievement by using student-level data from Indiana. The results of our analysis point to substantial variation, especially between the state’s two largest authorizers: Ball State University and the Indianapolis Mayor’s Office. Some of the variation is driven by the types of operators these bodies authorize to run charter schools. However, operator effects are not consistent across authorizers, suggesting a more complex story about how authorization affects student achievement. These results point to the ways that public and private interests in charter schools may complicate the work of authorizers and suggest a need for policymakers to offer more guidance in how authorizers carry out their various accountability mandates.
ISSN:0002-8312
1935-1011
DOI:10.3102/00028312231167802