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What Matters Most in a High School Report
If you’ve seen the notices about high school reports and
“school report cards” you’re more aware than most
in your community about the ranking and “grading” of
the various schools and school districts. As part of the No Child
Left Behind laws, school districts are now held accountable for
any number of measures and the progress and achievements of the
district are made very public.
Reading a School Report
School reports try to be straightforward to make it easier for parents
and educators to understand what the school and district have done
to date, but with so much data, it’s no wonder most individuals
struggle to find relevant information. To simplify matters, most
states offer some form of ranking system. The Exemplary schools,
for example, might have the highest scores on standardized tests
and the lowest drop out rates. The Acceptable schools meet the minimum
standards while Unacceptable schools are falling short of the standards.
Digging into High School Reports
While the label used on a school can be a good guideline, it is
by no means the most important thing about a high school. In many
of the ranking systems, the labels can be thrown off by a single
individual who was having a bad testing day. In others, the labels
don’t take as many pertinent facts into consideration. For
example, looking harder at a school report will let you learn about
the culture of the school as a whole. You can find:
- The number of students taking college level classes. The
more students taking AP (Advanced Placement) classes, the more success
driven the school is as a whole. If a full quarter of the school
is taking college level courses before graduating, you can count
on rigorous coursework and self-motivated students.
- The number of economically disadvantaged children in the
school. The government realizes that low-income students need additional
support and provides this support in the form of money. Schools
with high levels of economically disadvantaged students will have
more money for school projects, field trips and opportunities than
other schools, but that might be balanced by different elements
such as the level of parent involvement and support as many parents
are working multiple jobs in this situation to make ends meet.
- The number of students taking the SAT. Students taking
the SAT while in high school are focused on the university education
that follows high school. While they may opt for a place in a community
college for a time, the junior colleges don’t require students
to take the SAT in most cases. When a student pushes herself to
take the SAT, she is college and career bound. If only a small percentage
of the school is taking the SAT, only a small percentage of the
school is planning to go to a university after graduation.
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