Public vs. Private Schools

A recent federally-sponsored report comparing scores on NAEP tests (National Assessment of Educational Progress)for public and private school students has received considerable attention, particularly by those opposed to school choice programs. By issuing the report on Friday afternoon, generally considered the best time to bury embarrassing news, the Bush education department gave credence to the notion that the report undermined school choice.

In essence, the report found little significance difference between results at the two groups of schools when adjusted for measured student characteristics, although generally the private schools did better before the adjustment was made.

This result should not be especially surprising. Controlling for student demographics certainly helps in making a fairer comparison. But one question left unanswered is which students within a democraphic group get sent to private schools. Are they the most able students whose parents are looking for a more competitive environment? Or are they struggling in public school and have parents who are desparately searching for an alternative, as seemed to be true of many participants in the Milwaukee choice program? Unfortunately with NAEP data there is no information on students' previous performance.