Summary:
Zip code 32118 in Daytona Beach, Florida, is home to two public elementary schools serving grades PK-5 within the Volusia County School District, a district rated in the 51st percentile statewide.
For parents comparing options, R. J. Longstreet Elementary School stands out as the stronger choice for early elementary years, showing remarkable improvement by jumping 11 percentile points in its state ranking to reach the 52nd percentile. It achieves 74% proficiency in both 3rd Grade ELA and Math, significantly outperforming Beachside Elementary School, which scores 63% in ELA and only 45% in Math at the same grade level. Beachside, while larger with 618 students, shows a concerning "3rd grade cliff" in math and has a higher rate of economic disadvantage at 71.68% free/reduced lunch eligibility. R. J. Longstreet also spends more per student ($11,897 vs. $10,952) and maintains a slightly lower student-teacher ratio (14.5:1 vs. 15.4:1), correlating with its faster improvement trajectory.
A key shared challenge for both schools is chronic absenteeism, which exceeds state and district averages at 35.5% for Beachside and 38.6% for R. J. Longstreet. Despite this, R. J. Longstreet's academic gains are particularly noteworthy. Beachside shows strength in 4th grade (69% ELA, 72% Math) but struggles with inconsistency in 5th grade Science. Overall, R. J. Longstreet offers a strong foundation in early literacy and numeracy with rapid improvement, while Beachside provides a larger school environment with stronger upper-grade performance but a critical weakness in early math instruction.
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