Leaders and Laggards: A State-by-State Report Card on Educational Effectiveness

[Richard]

Interesting report with interactive graphic from the US Chamber of Commerce if you want to see how your state stacks up in the following areas:

• Academic Achievement
• Return on Investment
• Truth in Advertising About Student Proficiency
• Rigor of Standards
• Post-Secondary and Workforce Readiness
• 21st Century Teaching force
• Flexibility in Management and Policy
• Data quality

We decided on the following goal: to grade all 50 states and Washington, DC, on their K-12 school systems in order to identify both leaders and laggards in the tough business of school performance.

http://www.uschamber.com/icw/reportcard/default

Richard's $.02

[Pete]

NC Middle of the middle.

[Richard]

Remember - it varies by topic area. Click on each of the subject areas and the graphics/rankings change.

Interesting view of where each state's emphasis and areas of success/failure seem to be.

Richard's $.02

[swpa19]

PA. surprised me. I thought it would be lower. WVA is a total disaster.

[Dad]

Richard
There does not appear to be a correlation between rigor of standards and academic achievement grades. If there is, it appears to be negative without doing an analysis. If there any significance to this?

[SF-TX]

Interesting that the four states with the highest home foreclosure rates are all rated "D" or worse in 'Academic Achievement.'

California - F
Nevada - F
Arizona - D
Florida - D

[Richard]

There does not appear to be a correlation between rigor of standards and academic achievement grades. If there is, it appears to be negative without doing an analysis. If there any significance to this?

Interesting that the four states with the highest home foreclosure rates are all rated "D" or worse.

Remember - the grades are only category specific and there is no overall grade; when you click on a subject, the grades and rankings will change to reflect a grade for that specific area only.

Richard's $.02

[SF-TX]

Originally Posted by Richard

Remember - the grades are only category specific and there is no overall grade; when you click on a subject, the grades and rankings will change to reflect a grade for that specific area only.

Richard's $.02

The grade listed by the four states is for 'Academic Achievement.'

[Coldsteel24]

I find it interesting, maybe I'm looking at it the wrong way, but this kind of bugs me, as if the States are to blame for our children having poor grades/performance.

Oklahoma for example, which is where I live, received an A for 21st Century Teaching Force, but average or below marks on everything else.
If the State of Oklahoma is hiring above average teachers, why are the students not performing to standard? Rhetorical question, of course.

I wish more parents would stop blaming the state for their students poor grades and take some responsibility. IMMHO

[Richard]

I find it interesting, maybe I'm looking at it the wrong way, but this kind of bugs me, as if the States are to blame for our children having poor grades/performance.

IMO - they aren't trying to 'blame' anyone and - if you read their reasoning for doing it and their methodology - they're using a purely 'business' approach in updating A Nation at Risk(1983) which set off the entire educational reform foofarah we're still actively engaged in today.

Here's another view on how to 'fix' it all.

How to Raise the Standard in America's Schools
Walter Isaacson, Time, 15 Apr 2009

http://www.time.com/time/nation/arti...891468,00.html

Arne Duncan: The Apostle of Reform
Richard Stengel, Time, 15 Apr 2009

http://www.time.com/time/politics/ar...891473,00.html

Gutes lesen.

Richard's $.02

[ZonieDiver]

Verrrrry interesting.....

missed in the report, and probably not known, but in Colorado, (more specifically, Denver), 20% of all honor students are children of illegal immigrants. What is the tax base consequences for those receiving an education and not paying for it? Does this promote "entitlement, just give it to me" thought? The other 80% of the better students, are from working families.

Now consider the report as it pertains to CA, FL, AZ, etc.

I bet PA and WV look better under that light.

Political campaigns run on domestic issues, e.g., health care, education, womans right to..., etc. Presidencies are then defined by foreign policy.

POTUS stated he would establish national education standards, his staff needs to remind him that we have a National Education Dept. already in force. Can someone tell me when it was established and under what President?

I already know the answer, it's a rhetorical question.

[Coldsteel24]

Originally Posted by Richard

IMO - they aren't trying to 'blame' anyone and - if you read their reasoning for doing it and their methodology - they're using a purely 'business' approach in updating A Nation at Risk(1983) which set off the entire educational reform foofarah we're still actively engaged in today.

Here's another view on how to 'fix' it all.

How to Raise the Standard in America's Schools
Walter Isaacson, Time, 15 Apr 2009

http://www.time.com/time/nation/arti...891468,00.html

Arne Duncan: The Apostle of Reform
Richard Stengel, Time, 15 Apr 2009

http://www.time.com/time/politics/ar...891473,00.html

Gutes lesen.

Richard's $.02

Richard,

I did not mean that the folks doing the study were trying to blame anyone.
What I meant was that I fear it will add to the tendency (my perception) of people to blame everyone else for their troubles, including children not doing well in school. Sorry I wasn't clear about that. For example: "It's the states fault my son isn't getting good grades ________ (enter reason here)".

BTW, I'm definitely NOT trying to accuse anyone on this board of doing such.