Florida Charter Schools: The Effects of Types and Socioeconomic Status on Academic Achievement

No Child Left Behind (NCLB) was established in 2002 with the primary goal of closing the achievement gap between low socioeconomic students and their more advantaged peers. Charter schools are a part of NCLB\u27s school choice policy and are intended to be a form of intervention to close the achievement gap. Much research has been conducted to measure charter school student achievement compared to regular public schools. But little has been done in distinguishing the differences between charter schools and their impact on student achievement. This quantitative study identifies the different types of public charter schools in Florida using Carpenter\u27s (2006) typology study. Using multiple regression models, this study examines the relationships of their Florida Comprehensive Achievement Test (FCAT) school performance grades, percentage of students meeting high standards in math and reading, and three minority/SES measures. The findings show that there is a relationship between the above mentioned variables. They further show that overall traditional charter schools have a slight edge over progressive charter schools in academic achievement and that overall minority/socioeconomic status (SES) measures are a significant predictor of academic achievement for traditional and progressive charter schools in Florida