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National report card ranks S.C. No. 11
January 15, 2009
National report card ranks S.C. No. 11
South Carolina gets top scores for academic standards, school accountability and teacher support in a national report card issued this week.
Overall, the state ranks No. 11 for school policy and performance.
Quality Counts 2010, the 14th in a series of annual reports published by Education Week, ranks South Carolina No. 1 in the nation for its efforts to improve teaching and seventh for academic standards, assessment and accountability.
“So many times we hear from critics that our public school system is last in the nation, but this report and others like it are helping to dispel that myth,” said State Superintendent of Education Jim Rex. “Quality Counts is highly regarded because it uses original research with information from a variety of sources to produce its rankings.”
The 2010 report carries forward previous years’ grades in two categories and updates four others. Overall grades and national rankings for states are reported for the third consecutive year. South Carolina’s overall score of 80, a B-minus, is good for 11th place and exceeds the national score of 75.9, a C.
Teachers get an ‘A’
The state earned its best marks in the updated ranking of policies and programs that strengthen the teaching profession. South Carolina’s average — an A score of 95.8 — was the highest given to any state, more than 22 points above the nation’s average C score of 73.3.
South Carolina had a perfect score of 100 for supporting teachers, ascore of 96.2 for teacher incentives and a score of 91.2 in teacher accountability for quality, the nation’s top grades in each category.
Standards strong
The 2010 report ranks the state No. 7 for standards with an Aaverage of 94.4, 10 points above the nation’s B average of 84.2. The state of Arkansas tied South Carolina’s score. Texas, Florida, Ohio, Louisiana, Indiana and West Virginia were one to four points higher.
The state had a 100 for school accountability (versus a national score of 84.3), another 100 for academic standards (national score of 84.1) and a score of 83.3 for assessments (national score of 84.2).
“Our standards and our accountability system have been praised by a number of other independent national studies,” Rex said, “and the assessment changes approved by the General Assembly in 2008 were a significant improvement to give us more information about individual student performance. These 2010 marks are the best we’ve earned from Quality Counts in this category.”
The report notes that South Carolina is one of 48 states participating in the Common Core initiative to develop national standards in English/language arts and mathematics.
Improving chances
South Carolina’s 2010 ranking improved slightly in the Quality Counts updated “chance for success index,” a calculation aimed at predicting a child’s “life prospects” from birth through adulthood, given the educational and economic hurdles that he or she is likely to face.
In addition to student achievement, the index includes economic and social factors such as family poverty levels, parental employment, parent education and annual income.
The state had a C grade of 75.1, about three points below the national average of 78 (C-plus). South Carolina ranked 36th in this category, compared to 37th last year and 39th in 2008.
“We’ve moved up a little, but I’m concerned that these gains may be wiped out by these tough economic times,” Rex said. “The pressures being experienced by families affect the lives and education opportunities of their children. Schools may find themselves with fewer resources now to better serve those students who need help the most.”
Finance update
In this updated category, Quality Counts 2010 rated states according to perpupil spending and equity (whether education funding is higher for schools in less wealthy districts).
South Carolina did not rank well in the equity comparison — 41st in the country. The state’s overall school finance score of 73.8 earned a Cgrade and aNo. 25 national ranking. The national average score is 75.5, also a C.
“Our national ranking in this category is misleading because it’s based on finance data drawn from 2007 and doesn’t reflect the impacts of the current economic downturn,” Rex said. “Until we fix South Carolina’s fractured tax system and reform the way we fund schools and other vital government services, we can’t be assured of making meaningful progress in spending or in equity.”
Transitions, alignment
Scores in this category are carried over from Quality Counts 2009, which puts South Carolina at No. 22 with an overall C score of 75 — same as the national average — for enacting policies that align (or connect) early childhood education, postsecondary education and the economy and workforce.
The state earned another score of 100 for economy and workforce initiatives.
K-12 achievement
This category carries over scores from 2008, with South Carolina ranking 41st with a score of 64.5, aD,compared to the national score of 69, a Dplus. The index measures academic performance and gains made by students over time.
The Palmetto State tied with Oregon (also rated No. 41) based on reading and math scores from 2003-07, high school graduation rates (2000-04) and results of Advanced Placement exams (2000-06).
Math progress
In a separate section of the annual report, Quality Counts 2010 looked at state performance nationwide in one core academic area — mathematics.
South Carolina’s score of 58.9 ranked 44th, compared to the national average of 64.7.
Results were based on recent fourth and eighthgrade math scores on NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress) testing and on Advanced Placement high school scores.
South Carolina ranked better on the percentage of proficient NAEP scores and the percentage of high AP test scores, and on narrowing the achievement gap in eighthgrade NAEP math. But NAEP and AP score improvements over time were lower than national averages.
“We’ve drawn national attention in recent years for improvement on NAEP, but the bulk of our gains were made from 2000 to 2005, and we seem to have reached a plateau,” Rex said. “The same thing has happened across the nation, but we’ve got to pick up the pace of improvement if we want to break out of the pack and be more competitive as a state.”
