Do Special and Charter Schools Help Attainment in Public Schools?

How do we close the achievement and attainment gaps? The current school choice debate aims to determine the benefits, if any, of greater availability of various specialized school types in combatting these root education problems. The opposing philosophies in this debate are whether we want to keep all students together in the same schools--regular public schools--or to separate them according to some rubric, such as socioeconomic background or needs.