Articles: Quality Counts 2008
Article Name: Quality Counts 2008
Org: Education Weekly
Date: January 10, 2007
Abstract:
Education Week recently launched the "Quality Counts 2008" report, grading U.S. states across six areas of education performance and policy. While the U.S. posted a grade of C overall, the average state earned a D-plus on public school achievement, the poorest showing of any graded category. Marks were also low for state efforts to improve teaching, where 10 states earned a grade of D or lower. One of the six areas included in Education Week's report card, the teaching grades cover state efforts to increase accountability, provide incentives for talented people to enter and stay in the profession, monitor and allocate the distribution of talent, and build the capacity of teachers and principals to improve student learning. South Carolina earned the highest grade in the category, an A-minus.
In addition, a new analysis by the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center, which is used as part of the state report card, finds that the average U.S. public school teacher makes only 88 cents for every dollar earned by individuals in 16 comparable professions, such as accountants, architects, occupational therapists, and registered nurses. States are also graded in the report on a "K-12 Achievement Index" that focuses specifically on student learning in elementary through high school. The achievement index evaluates how well a state’s students perform compared with those in the top-ranked state on 18 separate indicators. The index takes into account current state performance, improvements over time, and poverty-based achievement gaps. Massachusetts again leads the nation, earning 82.5 points and a B. Maryland was the only other state to receive a B, while New Jersey earned a B-minus. The report found severe poverty disparities in many of the top-achieving states.
