Here’s a rare bit of good news from K–12 education: Every state—all fifty of ‘em plus the District of Columbia—have improved academically since the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation (USCCF) released its initial “Leaders & Laggards” report in 2007. But let’s not get giddy. For too many states, improvement is tantamount to winning the “most improved player” award in summer camp. It's great that Hawaii and D.C. have figured out which end of the bat to hold and where to stand in the outfield. But put them in right field and hope no one hits to them. Massachusetts is still batting cleanup. Minnesota and New Hampshire make a nice double-play combination, but let's not kid ourselves: This team is nowhere near ready for international competition. “Leaders & Laggards” is all about competition. The report takes an unapologetically business-oriented view of the nation’s K–12 performance, evaluating each state on eleven criteria, including international competitiveness, workforce readiness, technology, and return on investment. (Utah and Colorado get the most bang for their education buck; D.C., Louisiana, and West Virginia the least.) Some of the data is original and clever, such as which states have the most STEM-ready workforce. One in six Massachusetts students passed a science or math AP exam; only one in eighty Mississippi students managed to do so. You might not be surprised to see states like Montana, Wyoming, and North Dakota post top marks for academic achievement among low-income and minority students; what’s more impressive is that polyglot Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Florida are right alongside them. Much of the report repackages data that’s available elsewhere—the teacher quality section, for example, reprises NCTQ’s dispiriting data—but each category gets a breezy write-up and a clearly coded map. The individual state report cards are a model of clarity. In all, it’s as accessible (and sobering) as education data get.
SOURCE: “Leaders & Laggards: A State-by-State Report Card on K–12 Educational Effectiveness,” U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation (September 2014).
