Reporting or Sales?

Today's New York Times has a column questioning the ranking of high schools, such as the new U.S. News & World Reports ranking mentioned in Tuesday's post. Author Samuel G. Freedman posits whether the listing of high schools is more about selling magazines than about journalism or the search for quality secondary schools:

Whatever this list represents in terms of journalism or public service, it must be understood also as an exercise in business, in extending the U.S. News brand, in helping it survive in a financial and technological climate hostile to news magazines. Having devoted annual issues to ranking colleges, graduate schools and hospitals, U.S. News has now brought the same approach to secondary education.

What do you think?

Tuesday Tidbits - Dec. 4, 2007

It's Tuesday, so it must be time for some K-12 tidbits!

• The Dec. 10 issue of U.S. News & World Reports includes its first ranking of "America's Best High Schools." But don't look for Washington schools on the list. The U.S. News & World Report researchers' ranking formula evaluated schools based on how well students performed on state reading and math tests, participation in AP and several other factors. You can view the list of schools in Washington state here. Schools are sorted into Gold, Silver and Bronze categories, with scores given for Poverty Adjusted Performance, Disadvantaged Student Performance Gap, College Readiness Index, Minority Enrollment and Disadvantaged Student Enrollment.
  
• While we're on the subject of graduation and high schools, Tacoma News Tribune Columnist Peter Callaghan has a noteworthy column today on the debate over college readiness for all students. Should all students be required to take college prep courses regardless of their post-graduate plans?
  
• Experience vs. Degrees? Apparently experience trumps degrees when it comes to K-12 teaching, according to a new study by the Washington State Institute for Public Policy. “In the first few years on the job, a teacher gains considerably in her or his ability to improve the academic performance of students,” the report concluded. Members of the state's Basic Education Task Force, will use the study in its analysis of basic ed funding. (Unfortunately, it does not look like this study has been added to the WSIPP site just yet.)
  

College Rankings

Although the K-12 world often shies away from school comparisons, it's hard to not at least peek at U.S News and World Report's rankings of "America's best colleges."

Oh, there are a lot of familiar names amid the top 25 -- Princeton garnered the number one ranking followed by Harvard and Yale (sure to incite some Ivy smackdowns). In terms of Washington's schools, the University of Washington came in tied for 11th among public universities and 42nd among all universities in the country. Washington State University also made the overall list, tied for 118th with Samford University (AL) and University at Buffalo (SUNY). Peruse the full list for yourself and let the office/home bragging rights begin.

The list our state should be particularly proud of, though, is the magazine's ranking of the top schools for master's degree programs. That's where Washington really shines, with whopping 11 of the 55 spots (58 if you include the ties). Here's how that list shook out:

• Gonzaga (3rd)
• Seattle U. (6th)
• Whitworth (9th)
• Pacific Lutheran University (13th)
• Seattle Pacific University (14th)
• Western Washington University (17th)
• The Evergreen State College (27th)
• Walla Walla University (nee College) (29th)
  
• Central Washington University (43rd)
  
• Eastern Washington University (44th)
  
• Saint Martin's University (tied with three others at 58th)
  

With this announcement coming out today, the magazine's Web site is about as slow as I-5 between Spokane St. and I-90. Needless to say, there's lots of fodder for office water coolers everywhere.