Earlier this month, Margrady Research released a study called “Resilience: Will Urban Schools that Beat the Odds Continue to Do So During the COVID-19 Pandemic?” Analysts Jesse Margolis and Eli Groves started the project before coronavirus hit and so the report is divided into two parts. The first part updates 2015 data from the Center For Reinventing Public Education (CRPE), which calculated the percentage of students in 50 large U.S. cities that attend “beat the odds” schools, i.e., public charter or traditional school where student proficiency exceeds expectations. The results were mixed, but not in Newark, which was rated the best-performing urban district in the country. (See here for NJLB coverage of the 2015 CRPE report.)
The second part of the report examines whether beat-the-odds school districts (charter school networks are considered districts) have been able to translate their successful in-person models to remote learning practices at a similar rate as other districts.
Here are the key findings:
Kyle Rosenkrans, CEO and founder of New Jersey Children’s Foundation,* which funded the report, said,
These findings tell a shared success story. Newark continues to show the nation that we can create a system of great public schools when district and charter schools work together to expand educational opportunity for all. Newark’s students, teachers, and leaders deserve immense credit for this historic achievement. When things got tough, the city banded together to create more unity, and study after study has shown that we now have a stronger school system for our children.
Key findings about Newark are:
For more coverage see The 74 and TapintoNewark.
* Brightbeam, which supports NJLB, is a grantee of NJ Children’s Foundation.
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