Charter schools are flying high – with nearly 85 percent of students meeting or exceeding standards in math, and 67 percent in English.
The gains have Mayor Bloomberg and Schools Chancellor Joel Klein crowing.
“These outstanding gains made by students in charter schools this year show what a great choice these schools are providing for thousands of families across the city,” said Bloomberg.
“Results like these are especially gratifying for those of us who worked last year to convince lawmakers in Albany to increase the cap on the number of charter schools we can open.”
For the third straight year, charter-school students in Grades 3 through 8 outperformed their district counterparts statewide and in the city on the state’s math and English-language-arts exams.
“Charter schools in New York City immensely benefit the 18,000 children who attend them and remind the rest of us what is possible in public education,” said Klein.
“Our charter schools serve a higher percentage of poor and African-American and Hispanic kids than other city schools, yet their students are scoring at the same level in reading as the rest of the state and at higher levels in math.
“These results are proof that all children, irrespective of their background, can succeed if given the opportunity.”
Among those with sky-high scores were the Carl C. Icahn Charter in The Bronx and the Brooklyn Charter School.
At Icahn, 100 percent of third-, fifth-, sixth- and seventh-graders met state standards in math.
Icahn principal Jeff Litt credited the school’s performance – which ranked in the top seven among charter schools nationally – to a “no-excuses” culture, small class sizes and dedicated teachers and parents.
“High academic achievement is something that is absolutely expected here,” he said. “We don’t teach generically.”
Litt also noted that charter schools have more flexibility.
“Instead of being rules-based you’re outcomes-based,” he said.
Former New York Giant NFL star Tiki Barber – a board member at The Harlem Village Academy Charter School – also weighed in on the super performances.
“[The] entrepreneurial approach to education reform is raising the bar for urban academic achievement,” he said.