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Figures released to support Gov. Christie campaign for more charters

As part of Gov. Chris Christie's strategy to promote private charter schools, the state Department of Education Tuesday released figures that indicate the majority of charter schools in urban areas last year outperformed public schools in their districts on required standardized testing.

Education officials maintain the data affirms the need for legislative approval of the governor's proposals to expand choice for children in failing schools, and change New Jersey's charter law to attract high-quality operators to the state.

The charters, located in poor urban areas, scored higher on the New Jersey Assessment of Skills and Knowledge and the High School Proficiency Assessment tests in 2010, according to figures released by the DOE.

For eighth-grade students, 79 percent of the charter schools in urban areas scored higher than their home district in language arts, while 69 percent of the charter schools scored higher than their home district in math.

"The data shows us that the innovation and creativity that drove the charter movement in the first place are getting real results for our children," state Acting Education Commissioner Chris Cerf said. "High-quality charters in New Jersey are shining examples of why we can no longer accept that zip code equals destiny. It's critical that we act immediately to strengthen and expand charter schools in the state by implementing Governor Christie's education reforms."

In Newark, all but two of the nine charter schools outperformed the district average for math and all but two out-scored the district average in language arts. Four charter schools -- Discovery, Gray, Robert Treat Academy and North Star -- bested the state average in language arts. In math tests, Discovery, Gray, Greater Newark, North Star Academy and Robert Treat Academy scored higher than the state average. In Camden, all four charters outperformed the district averages in language arts and math.

"These charter schools are living proof that a firm dedication to students and a commitment to best education practices will result in high student achievement in some of New Jersey's lowest-income areas," Carlos Perez, chief executive officer of the New Jersey Charter School Association, said. He pointed to data for third grade language arts, where more than half the charters outperformed the schools in their home districts, and of those, more than 75 percent were located in former Abbott districts.

"With charters — as with all schools — accountability is critical," Mashea Ashton, Newark Charter School Fund CEO, said. "Charters are not permanent and must be renewed on a regular basis, helping ensure accountability. The data shows that charter schools are working hard and successfully providing a high quality education for their students."

Two Newark charters were recently given the national Blue Ribbon award; five New Jersey charters have received the award, considered the highest honor an American school can achieve. The federal Blue Ribbon School Program honors public and private elementary, middle, and high schools, in operation for five or more years, that are either high performing or have improved student achievement to high levels, especially among disadvantaged students.

— TOM HESTER SR., NEWJERSEYNEWSOOM.COM