Posted on 03/19/2006 6:19:56 PM PST by SmithL
I'm disappointed to see FL is 36, but they were 39 last year so I guess that's a little progress.
Those rankings are suspect. Out of 21 criteria, only 6 are based on student proficiency.
If you have asked to be added to this list, and haven’t been receiving the pings, please let me know. I’ve had a problem with my file synchronization between my home and work computer, and apparently have lost some names on the list. I think I have the problem fixed, and will gladly re-add your name.
Do they rank states according to student's collective GPA?
of course not! that might make sense!
This is how they came to their conclusions:
METHODOLOGY--This fourth Smartest State designation is awarded based on 21 factors chosen from Morgan Quitno’s annual reference book, Education State Rankings, 2005-2006.
Featuring four new factors, this year’s award de-emphasizes spending for public schools and instead measures states based on student achievement, positive outcomes and personal attention from teachers.
(As a result, rankings for this year’s Smartest State Award are not directly comparable to last year’s rankings.)
To calculate the Smartest State rankings, the 21 factors were divided into two groups: those that are “negative” for which a high ranking would be considered bad for a state, and those that are “positive” for which a high ranking would be considered good.
Rates for each of the 21 factors were processed through a formula that measures how a state compares to the national average for a given category.
The positive and negative nature of each factor was taken into account as part of the formula. Once these computations were made, the factors then were assigned equal weights.
These weighted scores then were added together to determine a state’s final score (“SUM” on the table above.)
This way, states are assessed based on how they stack up against the national average.
The end result is that the farther below the national average a state’s education ranking is, the lower (and less smart) it ranks.
The farther above the national average, the higher (and smarter) a state ranks.
This same methodology is used for our annual Healthiest State, Safest and Most Dangerous State and Safest/Dangerous City Awards.
Ooookay.
bingo.
My kids are already out of California schools.
My oldest daughter was threatening to her second grade teacher. Aside from teaching my daughter how to correct the teacher without causing offense, I also had to kowtow to the teacher at the parent teacher conference. "Oh, I am so glad that my daughter has you for a teacher. (lie) My father was his school's shop steward, just like you (true except for the just like you part). I was afraid that ____ would have a new teacher that didn't have much experience."
After that, my daughter could do no wrong, and was almost a co-teacher.
How well do California students perform on the NAEP?
It looks as though quite a few states have very low standards for "proficiency".
How many of those not meeting the standard are illegals? Costing the taxpayers and legal students in many ways.
What's the problem?
If the schools can't meet the standards, just ignore the standards!
Heck, the Kansas City, MO public school district lost its state accreditation some 4 or 6 years ago... what's the big deal? Nobody seems to care!
As long as the schools keep on getting the money... That's all that's important.
Although I wonder how quickly the schools would improve if state funding was cut off while the schools were not accredtited.
Mark
the little darlings will stay just as stooopid as you let them...
It's time to bring competiion to the public school monopoly.
If you want blatant grade inflation, look at the ivy leagues or most private schools. of course people who go there will say otherwise, but its sadly true. A friend of mine attended an ivy league and then when he came back for the summer attended the local UC for summer school. He was shocked that the average grade in the class was a C. He said thered be holy hell if the average grade in one of his classes wasnt a B or an A.
Sorry. I'm not interested in anything the NEA has to say. As far as I'm concerned, they are part of the problem.
That's the same thing my wife (a HS chemistry teacher) says.
Ping
Yep!!!! San Jose Unified closed my kids' school last year, and it was a great school: medium sized, good test scores, active parents, music, science, and a cool outdoor nature trail.
Now, my girls are in an awful school. Science is considered an enrichment activity. It was a middle school that they converted to an elementary school. It's big, and there are tons of discipline problems.
I'm looking at homeschooling my kids next year.
I went to Texas A&M. It was known to be a flunk out school.
However, Rice is supposed to be a better school, but everyone that goes there gets good grades.
When I worked, I always liked working with people from good public universities.
Everybody LIMBO!!!! How low can you go?
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