Eighty percent of their graduates go to college, as compared to 67 percent of public school graduates. What's really interesting about this is that the kids in Pentagon-operated schools are just as poor and diverse as kids in public schools. Forty percent of them are black or Hispanic, as compared to 30 percent in the public schools. Yet, test scores of minority and poor children in Pentagon schools are only a few points below other students, despite the fact that their education is disrupted every two or three years by their parents being transferred. Salaries of the teachers in Pentagon schools are higher, which explains why more of them have masters' degrees than regular public-school teachers.
More military kids live with two parents instead of one.
The parent who is in the military must have either a high school degree or GED, so he or she appreciates education. Discipline is less of a problem, because a serious offender will be reported to the military parent's commander who can suspend the child and move the family off the base. Not every military installation is lucky enough to have a school operated by the Defense Department. At most installations, the military strikes a deal with the local school district to educate dependents' children. That's what happens at the Little Rock Air Force Base in Jacksonville.