The results of the 2014 School Achievement Index, for school year 2013-14, are now available. It is worthwhile to note that, in 2013, the State Board of Education significantly changed how the Achievement Index ranks schools. These changes were implemented in order to reflect the requirements of the U.S. Department of Education and “anticipate results from the federal Smarter Balanced test taken by Washington students this past spring, 2015.” The Washington Policy Center reports,
“Governor Jay Inslee has recommended ‘a system in which every school in the state receives a letter grade that’s accessible to parents.’ The purpose is to let parents and the general public knows how well public school administrators are fulfilling their paramount duty to provide for the education of every child.
“The six rankings used by the State Board of Education are Exemplary, Very Good, Good, Fair, Underperforming and Lowest 5 percent. Following Governor Inslee’s recommendation for letter grades for public schools, Washington Policy Center reports these at A, B, C, D, F and F-.”
The overall statistical results are as follows:
- Nearly half of Washington public schools, 921 schools, or 44 percent, received a D ranking or lower
- 818 schools, 39 percent, received a B or C ranking
- Only 91 public schools, 4 percent, received an exemplary A ranking
- 267 schools, or 13 percent, were not rated
You can find the Washington Policy Center’s Achievement Index ranking for schools across Washington State here.
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