Atlanta
(2012-02-20)
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The report says traditional public schools slightly outperformed charter schools on federal benchmarks last year. But Louis Erste, Georgia's charter schools division director, says historically, the two have been neck-and-neck when it comes to achievement.
"They're practically on top of each other and they shift positions every year or so," Erste says, "So, this year it just so happens that traditional schools are ahead instead of the charter schools."
The report also says graduation rates at charter schools are about the same as the state average. But Erste says the purpose of the report isn't to pit charter schools against traditional ones.
"There's a lot of really, really high-quality schools, both traditional and charter schools," he says, "And there are some that need work. What a report like this does is highlights the fact that there are both."
According to the report, about 6% of Georgia students are enrolled in charter schools.
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