Study: Vouchers Help Some Blacks

L O S   A N G E L E S, Aug. 28 -- A study that measured the effect of school vouchers on student performance found that black students performed better on standardized tests after switching to private schools.

The study, released today, found no similar improvements amongother ethnic groups, however.

The voucher system, which provides money to help parents pay forprivate schooling, has become a key issue in the presidentialelection and in California, where voters face a voucher initiativeon the November ballot.

The study, led by Paul Peterson, a government professor atHarvard and a fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution,examined three privately funded experimental programs in New York,Washington, D.C., and Dayton, Ohio.

Researchers found that between 1997 and 1999, black children onvouchers raised their percentile rankings on standardized math andreading tests on average by 6.3 points. Their scores were comparedwith a control group of students who were not awarded vouchers bylottery and remained in public schools.

The gains were deemed statistically significant by researchers,who said they equal a third of the nationwide gap in test scoresbetween blacks and whites.

No Difference for Whites, Hispanics

The scores of white and Hispanic children taking part in avoucher program, however, showed no statistically significantchange.

One theory for the difference is that the black studentspreviously attended worse schools and may have benefitted the mostfrom a private education, Peterson said.

Supporters of the voucher system quickly claimed the study fortheir cause.

“We have, at least in this study, improvement in clearly themost needy group in the country,” said Brian Bennett, a policyconsultant for the pro-voucher Proposition 38 initiative inCalifornia.

Critics of vouchers, however, claimed the study was taintedbecause it was done in cooperation with pro-voucher organizationssupporting the three programs.