Appendix:
For-Profit Education Providers
Table A.1
Edison Schools
Company history
H. Christopher Whittle, who previously created the first national electronic
news system for middle and high schools in the United States, founded
Edison in 1992. Edison opened its first school in 1995.a
Service description
Edison contracts with local school districts and the boards of charter
schools to manage education in and the operations of K12 schools.
· Each family with a student in second grade or above receives a computer
and a modem. Edison teaches parents, teachers, and students how to effec-
tively use the computers.
· Students spend approximately 28 percent more time in school each year
than do students attending traditional public schools.
· Elementary schools use a reading program developed at John Hopkins
University and a mathematics program developed at the University of
Chicago.
Market penetration
Edison serves approximately 38,000 students in 79 schools.
· Edison schools that have operated long enough to generate trend data
Results
(generally two years) show generally favorable gains in test scores com-
pared to the best available national measure of achievement trends, the
National Assessment of Educational Progress.b
· Edison's surveys show that parents with children in Edison schools are
more satisfied with their schools than are parents of children attending
regular public schools.c
Cost
Edison schools are supported by government funds on a per pupil basis.
Parents do not pay tuition.
a
See http://www.edisonschools.com.
b
Edison Schools, "Prospectus," pp. 5152.
c
"According to a survey prepared for us by an independent market research firm for the 19971998
school year, covering all 20 of our schools then in operation, over 50 percent of the parents of our stu-
dents gave our schools grades of A or A-. This compares to 37.2 percent of parents who give a grade of
A or A- in U.S. public schools generally, according to the same market research firm." Ibid., p. 50.
20