The Challenge of Evaluating Charter Schools: The Case of KIPP Charter Schools in North Carolina

Abstract

This paper examines the success of the two KIPP charter schools in North Carolina that have been significantly more successful at raising minority test scores than most other charter schools in North Carolina. This paper asserts that parents with a higher degree of educational social capital are more likely to have children who make high scores on standardized tests. Using survey research this paper does not find significant evidence that parents at KIPP schools have a higher degree of social capital than the traditional public school surveyed.