New study: Private–school advantage may not exist

Low–income students who attend urban public high schools generally do just as well as private–school students with similar backgrounds, according to a study released this week. Students at independent private schools and most parochial schools scored the same on 12th–grade achievement tests in core academic subjects as those in traditional public high schools when income and other family characteristics were taken into account, according to the study by the nonpartisan Center on Education Policy. The new study also looked at a range of other family characteristics, such as whether a parent participates in school life. “When these were taken into account, the private–school advantage went away,” the report states. Read more here.