Chicago School Closings Found to Yield Few Gains

Federal Officials Are Pushing Similar 'Turnaround' Policy

A majority of Chicago students affected by school closings were sent to schools that were low-performing, just like those they left behind—moves that had no significant impact on performance for most students, a study released last week finds.

The lack of academic improvement raises questions about a strategy that’s part of U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan’s spotlight on changing the nation’s lowest-performing schools.

The study, by the University of Chicago’s Consortium on Chicago School Research , examines the academic effects of the closings on students at 18 elementary schools shut down between 2001 and 2006. To measure the impact, the researchers compared students 8 and older with their counterparts in schools that had similar characteristics but continued to operate. The schools had a combined enrollment of 5,445 at the...