Review ProtocolsThis review focuses on charter school interventions in the United States with students in grades PK–12 with a primary focus on student academic achievement and other outcomes. The following research questions guide this review:
- What is the impact of charter schools on their students’ academic achievement in language arts, mathematics, and other subjects, as measured by test scores?
- What is the impact of charter schools on their students’ other outcomes, including attendance, experience of disciplinary actions (suspensions or expulsions), social-emotional competence, educational attainment (for example, high school graduation, college entry, and degree completion) and earnings in adulthood?
- What is the systemic impact of the expansion of the charter sector in a community on student achievement and educational attainment outcomes for students in traditional public schools?
Table of Contents
- Purpose Statement
- Key Definitions
- Procedures for Conducting the Literature Search
- Eligibility Criteria
- Design Standards
Protocol Details
- Version: 3.0
- Released: January 2018
What is a Protocol?
Starting in January 2021, the What Works Clearinghouse (WWC) uses the Study Review Protocol in combination with the Procedures and Standards Handbook to guide reviews of all studies. In particular, the Study Review Protocol provides additional information on eligible outcome domains for all topic areas reviewed by the WWC and provides examples of outcome measures that fall within each domain.
When conducting systematic reviews, the WWC uses the Study Review Protocol to review studies and an accompanying topic area synthesis protocol to define the parameters of the systematic review. The synthesis protocol provides criteria for the literature search; guidance on how to identify and prioritize relevant studies for review and inclusion in evidence synthesis products; and guidance on intervention, sample, and outcome eligibility criteria for the synthesis.
Prior to 2021, studies were typically reviewed using a topic-specific synthesis protocol and the corresponding version of the Procedures and Standards Handbook. In addition to defining the parameters for the review, these protocols described any topic-specific applications of the design standards, such as how to establish baseline equivalence between samples when required.