Some MA Districts Post High Out-of-School Suspension Rates

Below is a list of the top 20 Massachusetts school districts with the highest out of school suspension rates for school year 2011-12. Individual charter schools are considered separate districts by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

1. Roxbury Preparatory Charter: 56.1%
2. Grove Hall Preparatory Charter: 50%
3. City on a Hill Charter: 43.6%
4. Up Academy Charter Boston: 38%
5. New Leadership Charter: 36.6%
6. Boston Preparatory Charter: 35.1%
7. Lowell Middlesex Academy Charter: 32.1%
8. Holyoke: 27.3%
9. Edward Brooke Charter: 24.9%
10. Hampden Charter School of Science: 24.7%
11. Codman Academy Charter: 23.5%
12. Spirit of Knowledge Charter: 22.8%
13. Martin Luther King Jr. Charter School of Excellence: 22.5%
14. Edward Brooke Charter 2: 22.4%
15. Boston Green Academy Horace Mann Charter: 19.4%
16. Community Charter School of Cambridge: 19.4%
17. Fall River: 18.4%
18. Berkshires Arts and Technology Academy: 18.1%
19. Excel Academy Charter Chelsea: 17.9%
20. Franklin County Regional Vocational Technical Institute: 17.6%

Citation: www.doe.mass.edu

KIPP Lynn Data by Subgroup

Below are the Reading/English Language Arts CPIs by subgroup on the 2012 MCAS exam for the KIPP Lynn Charter School. CPIs are a measure of the extent to which students are progressing toward 100% proficiency in ELA or math; the goal is a CPI of 100 which is the equivalent of all students having achieved proficiency on the exam.  More specifically, each student participating in the MCAS is given a score based on well they perform on the MCAS which is later averaged among the district, school or subgroup to determine the CPI. Possible scores are 0 (Warning/Failing - Low), 25 (Warning/Failing - High), 50 (Needs Improvement - Low), 75 (Needs Improvement - High), and 100 (Proficient or Advanced).

	CPI	Percentile in Grade Span
All Students	83.5	24
Students w/ Disabilities	56.9	18
High Needs	81.7	57
ELL/Former ELL	75.0	78
Low Income	81.7	44
Asian	--	--
Afr Amer/Black	86.4	81
Hispanic/Latino	81	56
Multi-Race, Non-Hispanic	--	--
White	86.6	21

Below are the Math CPIs by subgroup for the 2012 MCAS exam.

	CPI	Percentile in Grade Span
All Students	71.3	27
Students w/ Disabilities	42.6	22
High Needs	69.1	70
ELL/Former ELL	70.2	80
Low Income	69.4	57
Asian	--	--
Afr Amer/Black	69.2	78
Hispanic/Latino	69.8	70
Multi-Race, Non-Hispanic	--	--
White	79.1	40

Citation: www.doe.mass.edu

Lynn Students Attending a Number of Charter Schools

According to Massachusetts Department of Education's fiscal year 2013 projections, the city of Lynn will serve as the sending district for 685 students to 13 different charter schools both in and outside the city (Prospect Hill is one charter school with two campuses).

School	City	Grades Enrolled	# of Students
Benjamin Bannekar	Cambridge	K - 6	6
Community Charter - Cambridge	Cambridge	7 - 12	4
Edward Brooke	Boston	K - 8	1
Excel	Boston	5 - 8	1
Gloucester Community Arts	Gloucester	2 - 8	2
KIPP Lynn	Lynn	5 - 10	566
Marblehead Community	Marblehead	4 - 8	8
Mystic Valley Regional	Malden	K - 12	13
North Central Charter Essential	Fitchburg	7 - 12	1
Phoenix Charter	Chelsea	9 - 12	26
Pioneer Charter - Science	Everett	7 - 12	16
Prospect Hill Academy	Cambridge	6 - 12	3
Prospect Hill Academy	Somerville	K - 5	19
Salem Academy	Salem	6 - 12	19
			685

*All Data Taken from: www.doe.mass.edu

KIPP Lynn Sees More Demand for High School than Spots Available

Per KIPP Lynn officials, 98 students entered the 9th grade lottery for school year 2012-13 while 29 entered for admission to the 10th grade. The school expects to enroll approximately 20 new students to its 9th grade  class as it is believed that about 70 (of the 95) 8th grade students currently at KIPP will continue onto the high school level; next year's 9th grade class will consist of 90 students total. Students entering the 10th grade lottery will remain on a wait list and will be accepted only if a student leaves the school or is retained in the 9th grade. KIPP will move to its new location in the Highlands in the fall of 2012.

MA Board of Education Approves 4 New Charter Schools

As previously posted, Ed Commissioner Chester Mitchell recommended the approval of four new charter schools from a field which included six final round applicants. Today (2/28) the Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education voted to grant charters to the founders of the proposed new schools. Two of the schools (Dudley Street Neighborhood School, Boston and the Paulo Freire Social Justice School, Holyoke) will open in the fall of 2012 while the other two (Baystate Academy, Springfield and Collegiate Charter of Lowell) will open in 2013.

Where are the Charter Schools in Massachusetts?

In Massachusetts, there are 72 (Commonwealth and Horace Mann) charter schools with students currently enrolled; seven more approved charter schools are set to open for the 2012-13 school. year The Massachusetts Ed Commissioner has also recommended that four more charter schools be approved to open in the next few years. So, where are all the charter schools located in Massachusetts?

Adams	1
Amesbury	1
Boston*	22
Cambridge	3
Chelsea	2
Chicopee	1
Devens	1
Everett	1
Fall River	1
Fitchburg	1
Foxborough	1
Framingham	1
Franklin	1
Gloucester	1
Greenfield	1
Hadley	1
Haverhill	2
Haydenville	1
Holyoke	1
Hyannis	2
Lawrence	2
Lowell	2
Lynn	1
Malden	1
Marblehead	1
Marlborough	1
Marston Hills	1
New Bedford	2
Newburyport	1
Norwell	1
Orleans	1
Plymouth	1
Salem	2
South Hadley	1
Springfield	3
Tyngsboro	1
West Tisbury	1
Worcester	3

*Boston includes Brighton, Dorchester, East Boston, Hyde Park-Readville, Jamaica Plain, Roslindale and South Boston.

Here we see that a large percentage (31%) of the charter schools in Massachusetts are located in Boston with Dorchester alone housing five charters. Interestingly, most of the other cities/towns on the list only have one or two charters while Cambridge, Springfield, and Worcester have the most after Boston with three each. Of the Commissioner's ten urban districts, Brockton is the only city that does not have any charters; also none of the charter schools approved or recommended for approval will be located there. When the seven new charter schools open this year, two more charters will be located in Lawrence, four more in Boston (with one also serving Chelsea students),  and one more in Springfield. As previously posted, the charters recommended for approval this year will potentially be located in Boston, Holyoke, Lowell, and Springfield.

Massachusetts Ed Commissioner Recommends Approval of 4 New Charters

On February 16, 2012, Massachusetts Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Chester Mitchell announced that he will recommend four new charters be granted to groups looking to open schools in Boston, Holyoke, Springfield and Lowell. Baystate Academy Charter (Springfield), Collegiate Charter of Lowell, and Paulo Freire Social Justice Charter (Holyoke) will be Commonwealth charter schools while Dudley Street Neighborhood School (Boston) will be a Horace Mann charter school. Commonwealth charters are fully autonomous and operate independently of the local school district; Horace Mann charters are developed and operated in close operation with the host school district and, unlike Commonwealth charters, require approval by the local school committee. Two other charter school applicants during the 2011-12 cycle (Somerville Progressive and Springfield Preparatory) were not recommended for approval but can reapply during future cycles.

• Baystate Academy Charter School will enroll Springfield students in grades 6-12 beginning in 2013-14 and has a proposed maximum capacity of 560 students (80 students in each grade). According to the schools' founders, Baystate will have a STEM focused, health sciences orientated curriculum. The school plans to partner with Baystate Health, Springfield Technical Community College, and Expeditionary Learning in order to prepare students to enter their post-secondary education and health careers with scientific and technical knowledge.
• Lowell Collegiate Charter School (LCCS) will enroll students in grades K-12 also beginning in 2013-13 and has a proposed maximum capacity of 1,200 students. The school will start with grades K-5 and will expand until it reaches the 12th grade. LCCS will fully implement SABIS education program, assessment system, instructional methods and school management model.
• Paulo Freire Social Justice Charter School will enroll 500 students from Holyoke, West Springfield, Chicopee, Westfield, South Hadley and Northampton in grades 9-12. PFSJCS will run on an 180 day school year beginning in 2012-13 with students attending class from 8:30am - 4pm four days a week and 8:30am - 3pm on Fridays. The focus of PFSJCS's educational program will be centered on Personal Excellence, Supportive Communities, and Social Responsibility.
• Dudley Street Neighborhood School will enroll 308 students from Boston in grades K- 5 starting in 2012-13. Dudley will not only run on a longer school day/year but will also implement mixed-grade, looped two year classrooms so that teachers have time to adequately address individual learning needs. Students will be taught by teacher teams of four who will be responsible for 88 students over the two year period; on each team, at least one teacher will be dual-licensed in ESL and one who is dual-licensed in Students with Moderate Disabilities.

The Board of Elementary and Secondary Education will vote on the Commissioner's recommendations for charter school approval on February 28, 2012. There are currently 79 approved charter schools in Massachusetts; approval of these four schools would bring the total to 83.

Will the Increasing Divide Between the Lynn School Committee and Lynn Parents = A Push for More Charters?

In light of the Lynn School Committee's vote to renew Superintendent Latham's contract for another three years despite parent protest, I thought it would be apt to repost a piece written in December 2011 regarding the disconnect between Lynn school officials and parents/citizens.

Thinking about School Choice in the Context of the Lynn Public School System

Will parents continue to fight to be heard within the existing system or will increasing frustration related to the Lynn school administration's perceived unresponsiveness to parent concerns/criticisms result in a demand for more charter schools in the city? 

Thinking about School Choice in the Context of the Lynn Public School System

Reading this guest commentary by Mary Levy posted on the blog All Things Education served as a catalyst for thought about the desire for school choice within the Lynn Public School  (LPS) system, a district which has been deemed to be under performing by the state of Massachusetts. While this particular topic locally has been sensationalized (and somewhat racialized), there is a real need for discussion about the  want for more educational choices in "low performing" Lynn and the factors that contribute to the burgeoning push for school choice among parents in the city. Most salient was the point by Levy that in the Washington, D.C. public schools there have been many determined parents who sought to improve their neighborhood schools, but were mostly "ignored or rebuffed." Perhaps, this is (a major) part of the problem in Lynn as well. As local education blogger Stanley Wotring notes, LPS, either through their actions, tone, or overall unresponsiveness (real or perceived), may actually discourage parents from actively being involved in their child(ren)'s education despite the school system's call for an increased parental presence.

More importantly, however, there may be a disconnect between how parents and community members view the Lynn public schools and how the school committee/superintendent/mayor view them. At the superintendent's evaluation on December 21, 2011, the majority of school committee members praised the superintendent and the current state of the Lynn public schools. One statistic that many of the school committee members keep reiterating is that, among similar districts in terms of size and demographics, Lynn is ranked first. This statement has been held up as a positive indicator of Lynn's academic quality given certain contextual factors (high poverty, substantial English Language Learner/Limited English Proficiency population) despite what some may call sub par standardized test (MCAS) scores  (51% of students proficient in English language arts, 41% in math in 2011). Additionally, the dropout rate in 2009-10 was indeed not the worst in the state at 5.4%. Though these numbers may be the best among urban districts, it is debatable whether or not the Lynn citizenry should accept this as adequate or "not that bad" as there is the potential for great improvement. The fact that even high performing communities like Marblehead and Weston are actively trying to improve their test scores further underscores the need for Lynn to follow suit in light of its much lower standardized test scores. It does, in fact, appear that many parents do not accept that Lynn's current academic performance as the best the city can produce. While some parents  are less critical and simply want the district to progress in a positive fashion, other parents/community members hold very negative opinions about the school system, regardless of where it stands in comparison to other districts. Unfavorable sentiments about LPS from a less than satisfied faction of the Lynn population have appeared on the message boards/comment sections of various blogs and media outlets.

One parent, whose son was placed in an out-of-district placement, remarked:

"Would I go back? Would I move him to a Lynn middle school? Not on your life. If I can help he'll never be in another Lynn school." [source: Lynn School Watch]

Another parent moved away from Lynn in order to avoid having to send her child to public school in the city: 

 "I own multiple properties in Lynn and the sole reason I moved...was because of the horrific schools in Lynn. It was a wake up call to me as a parent when I actually first hand toured schools in the city. There are no gyms and outdoor areas at many of the schools. The class sizes are large. Police even need to be present! I hope someday things change. Until then most people who can will send their kids elsewhere." [source: Lynn-Side Edition]

 Of one particular elementary school, another parent said that was

"No discipline where needed, no organization and appropriate supervision of students. There is no adequate communication between teachers and parents. In process of trying to move my child out of that environment."[source: greatschools.org]

While another said

"There is no communication directly with the parents - until it's too late to correct a problem. My personal experience with this school was very unpleasant and stressful and I will NEVER recommend this school to anyone. The tone used to communicate with parents is offensive. Not to mention it's an under achievement school-extremely under achievement [sic]." [source: greatschools.org]

So, in the context of Lynn, what is school choice really about? Certainly the want for more school choice in the city is partly due to low test scores, questions about academic rigor, a higher than average drop out rate and concerns about bullying/school safety. The other, potentially more important factor, however, is a system that does not seem to be responding in tangible ways to parental concerns about the school system; refer back to  two of comments included here which cite a lack of communication among the parent's criticisms. Thus, the combination of negative sentiment toward LPS and an administration/elected school committee who is thought to be failing to address the schools' "poor" academic achievement while simultaneously appearing to invalidate parental concerns has resulted in a growing push for easily accessible school choice.  Here I specifically mention 'easily accessible' school choice as those with means have long been able to send their children to private or parochial schools like Sacred Heart, North Shore Christian or St. Mary's while low income parents have historically been left with their local public school which may be of poor academic quality. At the national level, the growing movement for 'school choice' has come to specifically mean charter schools or sometimes publicly funded vouchers given in order for low income students to attend private schools. In Massachusetts, there are 79 charter schools with six charter applications currently being reviewed by the state. With the advent and increase in tuition free charter schools in Massachusetts some of which produce high test scores when compared to the local district, parents with less resources in cities like Lynn are now also able to seek alternative educational environments for their children like their more well-off counterparts. In Lynn, parents can enter their child(ren) into the lottery for placement at KIPP Academy Lynn which currently serves grades 5 - 9 or the Phoenix Charter School (Chelsea) which serves grades 9-12 (other charter schools in the area do accept Lynn students if there is space available). KIPP, in particular, fills a significant need as an educational alternative because of the grades it serves (middle school level) especially when one considers that two of Lynn's three middle schools are currently among the bottom 20% of schools serving common grades statewide.

Particularly with regard to the city's lowest performing schools, it seems as though the topic of Lynn's educational quality has long been discussed without any real positive change or publicly stated plan of action. How many unflattering articles have appeared in The Daily Item and the Lynn Journal about LPS and, yet, some in positions of power still claim to not know of any dissatisfaction with the school system. Therefore the issue of school choice in Lynn may actually stem the fact that many parents may feel ignored or rebuffed when it comes to their concerns as Levy notes in her piece about the DC public schools. A fundamental partnership or alliance between the schools and parents (generally speaking) does not appear to exist in LPS due to negative experiences some have had with teachers, principals, the school committee or the school administration. Moreover, if LPS was under performing, but people had faith in the schools' leadership and future trajectory and also felt as though their issues/concerns/criticisms were not falling upon deaf ears then the desire for choice would likely not be as strong as it currently appears to be. As commenter Victoria Young states "The single biggest issue we face in this country...is the failure to listen to people." So while School Committee member Rick Starbard may hope to hold off another charter school in Lynn, in the current climate in which LPS does not appear to be progressing to the general public's satisfaction and parents do not feel heard, this may not be possible as parents continue to seek, and possibly demand, schools that will adequately respond to their needs.

A Q & A with KIPP Lynn Principal Anna Breen

KIPP (Knowledge is Power Program) is a network of college preparatory charter schools first established in 1994 by Teach for America (TFA) alums Mike Feinberg and Dave Levin. It has been widely successful and is currently the largest network of charter schools in the United States with 30 elementary schools, 61 middle schools and 18 high schools enrolling over 32,000 students nationwide. KIPP schools are located in cities such as Austin, New Orleans, Denver and our very own Lynn, Massachusetts.

KIPP Lynn (KAL) was established in 2004 and currently serves grades 5-9, but will serves grades 5-12 in the year 2014 after its expansion has been completed. Just over 84% of the student body are ethnic minorities (African American, Hispanic, Asian) and 88.9% are low income. In terms of standardized testing (the MCAS), the school has done well with 65% of its students achieving proficient or higher in English and 56% achieving proficient or better in the math on the Spring 2011 exam. For more specific results and a comparison to other Lynn public middle schools, see here, here, and here.

The following is a Q & A with Anna Breen, principal of the KAL Middle School and a fellow Wellesley graduate ('96). After graduating from Wellesley with a degree in environmental science, Ms. Breen completed a two-year stint with TFA in New York City. She went on to teach English, math and science at a KIPP Academy in the Bronx for 5 years and then taught at a public school in Virginia before moving to Massachusetts in 2004 to help establish KAL as a 5th grade math teacher. Ms. Breen, who currently lives in Lynn with her family, was promoted to Assistant Principal in 2006 and recently took on the role of Principal of KAL. She was gracious enough to answer a few questions about KAL, the charter/public school comparison and education in general.

Why do you think having a charter school like KIPP is beneficial to the city of Lynn?

Breen: The mission of KIPP is to help students graduate from college who, under normal circumstances, would not have that opportunity.  Students of color from places like Lynn graduate from college at an 8% rate.  We intend to do much better than that with our students.  One child going to college has a positive effect on the entire family, and if enough students from KIPP graduate from college, I believe we can transform this community.  If you look at the biggest struggles facing Lynn, gangs, drugs, and violence, I believe education is the best way to address them.

What, in your opinion, are the top three attributes/school policies that makes KIPP successful?

Breen: The most important thing that makes us successful is our excellent teachers.  Our teachers work extremely hard, constantly learn, and are willing to do whatever it takes to help students succeed.  A second important factor in our success is extra time.  During the school year, our students spend 50% more time in school than their counterparts in Lynn public schools.  Extra practice leads to more success.  A third factor is our family involvement.  We view parents as our partners and do whatever we can to help them be involved, including night-time parent classes.

KIPP tends to do well on standardized test scores like the MCAS. Is testing the main focus of a KIPP education?

Breen: Absolutely not.  The main focus of a KIPP education is college readiness.  We believe, however, that excellent teaching produces excellent test scores, and that our test scores reflect knowledge that our students possess.

Do you think that it's appropriate or even fair to compare KIPP's test results to other Lynn middle schools like Marshall or Breed? Why or why not?

Breen: Yes and no.  KIPP's test scores can be compared to those of Lynn public schools because we are working with the same population, and I believe that our test scores show that students from Lynn, especially poor students and students of color, can be successful.  At the same time, I think that the beauty of charter schools is the ability to innovate and use whatever methods we choose, and only be held accountable for our results.  The public schools do not have that luxury and are much more bound by traditional rules and methods.  Furthermore, public school principals do not have the power to lead and to hire and fire as I and other KIPP principals do.  So since public schools have limitations that we do not have, they may feel it is unfair to compare our results to theirs.

Do you think it would ever be possible to replicate KIPP's success in other Lynn public schools without converting to charters?

Breen: I think many of the methods we use could be replicated in Lynn public schools.  For example, many public schools have already adopted an extended day and year, to give students more time learning.  Our high behavioral standards, rewards and consequences, and teaching techniques could all be used by any school.  At the same time, as I discussed in my previous answer, it is a lot harder for public schools to make changes, and at the end of the day, I believe that for a principal to be effective, he/she must be able to hire, fire, and train his/her teachers.

 It seems that KIPP puts a lot of the responsibility for student success on teachers.  How much ownership should students have in their own success and achievement?

Breen: Ultimately a student will be most successful if all three partners (staff, parents, and student) are working together.  At the same time, we are a public school and do not see our mission as only educating the most motivated students, so teachers are responsible for finding ways to engage the students.

 Anything else you would like to add?

Breen: I would like to say that I have the greatest respect for anyone involved in educating the students of Lynn.  Instead of focusing on differences between KIPP and Lynn public schools, I wish more attention would be paid to the differences in resources between Lynn students and students from the neighboring, more affluent communities like Marblehead and Swampscott.  Let's focus on the institutionalized racism and class system that got us to this point where so few students from communities like Lynn have a chance to be successful.  At KIPP we can change the community by helping our students to and through college, but ultimately all students should have the opportunity to have an excellent education, and that's not how it works in this country right now.

For more information a KAL: www.kipplynn.org

For more information about the KIPP network: www.kipp.org

Does Charter School Attrition Matter If Test Results Are Good?

A large component of the recent education reform debate has centered around the growing number of charter schools across the country. Interest in the charter school movement seemed to intensify after President Obama's Race to the Top (RttT) legislation asked states to lift the cap on charter schools. Allowing more charter schools was in fact a criteria for 'winning' federal money for school improvements through RttT Another, likely more important factor, contributing to the focus on charter schools is the United States' most recent placement on he PISA or Program for International Assessment; the PISA is a worldwide evaluation of  students' scholastic capabilities in math, science and reading. In 2009, the United States ranked 30th in math (down from 24th in 2003),  23rd in science (down from 21st in 2006), and 17th in reading (down from 15th in 2000). As result of these rankings, politicians, educators and others began to look at improving our nation's schools with renewed urgency.

A negative consequence of this has been attacks on traditional public schools (A.K.A. the 'status quo'), school teachers, and teachers' unions who have been accused of protecting 'bad' teachers and against necessary reforms that would help students. Hatred toward teachers' union persists nationally despite the fact that there are states that do not allow unions (ex. Texas, Georgia). The focus on teachers' unions as the root of the American public school system's 'failure' has  increased the number of charter school supporters as many of these schools do not allow their teachers to unionize thereby making it easier to get rid of 'ineffective' teachers. Additionally, many charter schools  offer a longer school day and tutoring as a standard part of the curriculum. Most importantly, the most vocal education reformers are in favor of charter schools because of the (sometimes) excellent results that they produce. While Diane Ravitch, education historian, notes that on average charter schools do not do better than traditional charter schools, there are many charter schools considered 'better' schools based on the standardized tests scores that their students are able to achieve.

Massachusetts, often considered the best in terms of public education, has 63 charter schools with more set to open or expand in the coming school years. Below are the percentage of students who scored either proficient or advanced on the 2010 MCAS tests at 10 MA charter schools (percentages were combined).

	English	Math
Advanced Math & Science	94	85
Academy-Pacific Rim	74	63
Boston Collegiate	81	75
Boston Preparatory	73	69
City on a Hill	84	79
KIPP Lynn	76	55
MATCH	74	74
North Central	68	53
Phoenix	69	61
Salem Academy	78	64

Indeed a large percentage of students at these charter schools, many of whom come from minority and/or low income backgrounds, passed the MCAS test. Even more striking is how the pass rate changed over time. Below is a chart comparing the proficient/advanced rates during the students' first year at the charter school with their final year (some of these schools are middle schools, while others are high schools).

	First Year		Final Year
	English	Math	English	Math
Advanced Math & Science	92	89	98	95
Academy-Pacific Rim	52	63	97	96
Boston Collegiate	68	59	91	100
Boston Prepatory	67	75	92	100
City on a Hill	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
KIPP Lynn	37	37	83	74
MATCH	57	68	100	99
North Central	51	39	84	77
Phoenix	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Salem Academy	74	62	83	74

Again- excellent scores. Gary Rubinstein, Teach for America alum and high school math teacher, however, writes that there are "ways to fraudulently ways to improve test scores...One...is the practice by many charter schools of improving their test scores through attrition (see here here here here). Specifically, what Rubinstein is alluding to is the fact that the substantial improvement in test scores over time for charter schools may not be driven by 'better' teachers or improved curriculum. Instead, the improved test scores that some reformers tout as proof of their superiority may largely be the result of low performing students leaving the school. Thus, the charter schools' results could be deemed a facade based on the shedding of students who do not perform well.

Do the charter schools listed here see a decrease in students over time?

Below is a chart tracking student enrollment showing how many students were in each grade during the 2010-2011 school year.

	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12
Advanced Math & Science	0	180	266	203	114	76	62	62
Academy-Pacific Rim	75	84	83	73	50	39	47	33
Boston Collegiate	100	100	98	94	53	43	41	25
Boston Preparatory	0	50	91	69	53	46	23	14
City on a Hill	0	0	0	0	122	77	45	50
KIPP Lynn	100	100	86	84	0	0	0	0
MATCH	0	90	73	56	72	67	47	42
North Central	0	0	46	79	82	67	53	41
Phoenix	0	0	0	0	66	62	32	32
Salem Academy	0	55	56	54	51	35	30	28

Of the schools listed only one (KIPP) seems to have a set number of students for its initial class (100).Still it is apparent that for these schools, there is a substantial difference between the number of students in the earlier grades when compared to the later grades. Boston Collegiate, for example, had 100 students in the fifth grade during the 2009-10 school year but only graduated 25; the graduating class at Phoenix Charter School had about half the number of students that the 9th grade class did. 

Rubinstein makes a huge fuss about charter school attrition calling it analogous to cheating. He considers it cheating because some have pointed to charter schools' test scores as proof of their superiority over traditional public schools; these test scores, according to opponents of public school privatization, may in fact be driven by the shedding of more difficult student populations. Test result comparisons may indeed be misleading or skewed by attrition rates. The Advanced Math and Science charter school's 2010 test results, for example, included 243 students in the 6th grade class but only 60 in the 10th grade class; Boston Preparatory's results included 77 students in the 6th grade but only 26 in the 10th. Charter schools also tend to enroll smaller numbers of English language learners and students with special needs (see here) leaving some to wonder if these more difficult populations are the students leaving charter schools in large numbers over time leaving traditional public schools solely with the challenge of educating them.

At the end of the day does charter school attrition really matter if the results are excellent?

Generally speaking, maybe, but attrition in itself should not necessarily be our main priority. Students may move or may not do well academically making a choice to transfer, the parents may have decided it's not the right environment or that necessary services are not available. It is even possible that low performing  (or ELL or special needs) students do not leave at substantially higher rates that average or high performing students. On the other hand, there have been charter school students who have been asked to leave; this is certainly problematic given that it is much harder for a traditional public school to expel a student than it is for a charter school. Charter schools generally also do not admit new students after a certain grade while traditional public schools see students coming and going at any point during the year. Therefore, increased test scores may be the result of a combination of factors including the longer school days  and more stringent standards but also the departure of low performing or ELL students; it is complicated to parcel out what is what without reliable data and confirmation of the reasons for leaving by the parents/student. In the context of the current educational reform debate, however, in which schools are encouraged to compete for students, where winners (with high test scores) are rewarded and losers (with low test scores) are punished, charter school attrition among other data will continue to seriously scrutinized. Teachers and principals who are hard at work each day and understand the complexity of academic achievement are being asked to achieve 100% proficiency (i.e. perfection) and also protect their schools and students from sanctions such as school closures and private management. Thus, the search for that 'smoking gun' that explains some charter schools' success is perhaps a in part side effect of current political policies and public discontent.

So, as long as reformers such as Michelle Rhee and Bill Gates point to charter schools as the answer to the education crisis, attrition will matter. As long as conservative governors use charter school results as a reason to privatize public education and strip teachers of their collective bargaining rights, it will matter. As long as all charter schools, allowed free rein in determining who stays and who goes, are considered superior to traditional public schools regardless of their actual quality, it will matter. As long as public school teachers are attacked for not getting the same or better results, it will matter. As long we continue to move toward a two-tier system of education while racing to the top while leaving plenty of children behind, it will matter. It will matter as the bragging and boasting about test scores and graduation rates often begets those who will seek the truth about these so-called miracle schools as they often do not really exist. So regardless of where you stand in regard to charter schools, for these and many other reasons charter school attrition (regardless of what it is derived from) unequivocally does and will continue to matter.

All data taken from: www.doe.mass.edu