Includes Course Access, Student Progress, and Equity—That Can Help Parents Support Their Children’s Education and Take Action to Improve Their Local Schools
Matthew Nelson, President, GreatSchools
(Oakland, CA., Thursday, November 2, 2017) – GreatSchools – the leading nonprofit provider of trusted school information—will roll out new school ratings for all schools around the country. Parents nationwide will have expanded information about important aspects of schools—including course access, student progress, and equity—that can help them support their children’s education and take action to improve their local schools.
Taking advantage of the range of education data states make available, GreatSchools is adding this rich data into its rating system to ensure that school ratings reflect factors we know are important to parents and that are connected to students’ success in college and later in life. The new GreatSchools Summary Ratings include the following:
Academic Progress Rating – that shows how much a school helps students improve academically throughout the school year;
Equity Rating – that indicates whether a school effectively serves all groups of students, including students in different ethnic groups and students from low-income families; and
Advanced Coursework Rating – which includes information on the courses a school offers and the average number of advanced courses a student takes at the school.
GreatSchools’ new school profiles were designed with an explicit focus on the types of information parents need and the support that can help them take action with this information. For example, if a parent sees that their child’s school has a low Equity Rating compared to other schools in their state, they will find tips on how they can engage teachers and administrators to discuss improving the education of all students at this school. In addition, GreatSchools will continue to offer stories, videos, tips, grade-by-grade newsletters and interactive tools for parents on ways to support their children’s academic and social-emotional development from preschool through high school.