“Do You Know the Graduation-rate Goals Set by Your State? Should We Know?”

Under No Child Left Behind’s accountability provision, high schools must meet graduation-rate goals set by their states. But the law allows states to set their own goals, and the range of these goals varies widely according to a study released by the Education Trust in Washington.

“Because the law allowed states wide latitude, the goals for graduation rates vary widely. Nevada, for example, says its goal is to graduate 50 percent of its students; Iowa sets a target of 95 percent”, said Jennifer Medina of the New York Times, in her article, “A Study Finds Some States Lagging on Graduation Rates” published August 2, 2007.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/02/education/02graduation.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

This is the New York Times map “Setting the Bar” which illustrates the differences in state goals for graduation-rates. How does your state stack up?





Daria Hall, the author of the report, that criticizes states for not doing enough, said “We need targets that provoke action on behalf of the students, not ones that condone the status quo.” while representative George Miller, chairman of the House Education Committee and an architect of the original No Child Left Behind legislation, said “reauthorization of that law should include changes so that graduation rates were used as a key measure of performance”.

Ask Yourself:
Could just the awareness of the graduation-rate goals for your state, whether high or low, create a reflective dialogue that educators should have?
Do you believe raising the goal would improve graduation rates?
Have you and your colleagues had this discussion?
Were you just as surprised as I was?