Date of Conferral

2017

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Psychology

Advisor

Timothy Lionetti

Abstract

The following study examined the question of student achievement in online charter schools and how the achievement scores of students at online charter schools compare to achievement scores of students at traditional schools. Arizona has seen explosive growth in charter schools and online charter schools. A study comparing how these two types of schools are educating students will benefit parents who are considering the viability of online charter schools for their children's education. This study investigated the difference between educational achievements at online charter schools versus traditional schools. The study compared 16 online high schools to 16 similar traditional high schools. This study used the state standardized assessment, Arizona Instrument to Measure Standards (AIMS), scores to compare the two different types of schools. This study used ANOVA to compare the online charter school scores and students have in Arizona, this study identified which of these two schools is achieving greater academic success. By a significant margin the traditional brick and mortar schools achieved higher scores on the AIMS test in both reading and math. The traditional schools also achieved higher scores across the three years examined. In 2012 traditional school students earned an average of 51 points higher in reading and 41 points higher in math. In 2013 traditional school students earned an average of 84 points higher in reading and 28 points higher in math. In 2014 traditional school students earned an average of 52 points higher in reading and 35 points higher in math. This research hopes to direct positive social change by calling into question the validity of online high schools and how they are currently managed and accredited in AZ.

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