Every year, Education Week releases a Quality Counts report which examines state-level efforts to improve public education and pulls together a large number of statistics to create a picture of progress in each state. To provide a more in-depth look, Education Week will now provide this data in three reports rolled out over the course of the year. The first, “Grading the States” aims to illuminate what the high-performing states did well, how low-performers are approaching improvement, and lessons for boosting the quality of K-12 education overall. Several articles provide analysis, including an overview of common factors contributing to the success in top-performing states and a look at hurdles in the lowest performing states. A National Summary Report and State Highlight Reports rank each state on education indicators in three areas:
- The Chance-for-Success Index, which looks at 13 indicators to better understand the role of education across an individual’s lifetime.
- The School Finance Analysis, which examines school spending and measures of financial equity.
- The K-12 Achievement Index, which scores states on measures related to reading and math performance, high school graduation rates, and Advanced Placement exam results
This report will help policymakers, education leaders, community members, and families gain a better understanding of how their state education programs compare to others in the country. Improved college preparation and attendance, one of the common factors identified in high-performing states, could help move struggling states towards increased growth. Policies that support student-centered approaches may help states improve college and career readiness. Past year’s reports are also available on the site, including the 2017 version, to help gauge progress over time.
Source Organization: Education Week