From Christian News Now:
By DAVID CRARY AP National Writer
(AP) Although the pandemic disrupted family life across the U.S. since taking hold in spring 2020, some parents are grateful for one consequence: They’re now opting to homeschool their children, even as schools plan to resume in-person classes.
The specific reasons vary widely. Some families who spoke with The Associated Press have children with special educational needs; others seek a faith-based curriculum or say their local schools are flawed. The common denominator: They tried homeschooling on what they thought was a temporary basis and found it beneficial to their children.
Sparked by Pandemic Fallout, Homeschooling Surges Across US
Best and Worst Schools in America:
It is time to get the Federal and State Governments out of local education and let each school district determine their own path.
From WalletHub:
With more than half of educators reporting significant learning loss due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2021’s States with the Best & Worst School Systems, and expert commentary.
In order to determine the best school systems in America, WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 32 key measures of quality and safety. The data set ranges from pupil-teacher ratio and dropout rate to median standardized-test scores.
| States with the Best School Systems | States with the Worst School Systems |
| 1. Massachusetts | 42. Oregon |
| 2. Connecticut | 43. South Carolina |
| 3. New Jersey | 44. West Virginia |
| 4. Virginia | 45. Mississippi |
| 5. New Hampshire | 46. Oklahoma |
| 6. Maryland | 47. Alabama |
| 7. Delaware | 48. Alaska |
| 8. Nebraska | 49. Arizona |
| 9. Wisconsin | 50. Louisiana |
| 10. Vermont | 51. New Mexico |
Best vs. Worst
- Alabama has the lowest dropout rate, 8.30 percent, which is 3.7 times lower than in the District of Columbia, the highest at 31.10 percent.
- Vermont has the lowest pupil-teacher ratio, 10.83, which is 2.2 times lower than in Arizona, the highest at 23.56.
- Massachusetts has the lowest share of high school students who reported being threatened or injured with a weapon on school property, 4.50 percent, which is 2.8 times lower than in Louisiana, the highest at 12.40 percent.
- The District of Columbia has the lowest share of high school students who were bullied online, 8.90 percent, which is 2.3 times lower than in New Hampshire, the highest at 20.10 percent.
To view the full report and your state or the District’s rank, please visit:
https://wallethub.com/edu/states-with-the-best-schools/5335
More from WalletHub
- Most & Least Educated States
- Best College Towns & Cities in America
- Best Back-to-School Credit Cards for Parents
- Best Credit Cards for Students
- Cities with the Most & Least Student Debt
Expert Commentary
Does variation in per pupil spending explain most of the variation in school quality?
“Absolutely. From both a quantitative and qualitative lens, more money leads to greater opportunities and greater achievement. If you compare the outcomes of two affluent communities, you may not see much difference. But the amount of resources (i.e., books, training, experiences, materials, etc.) is considerably more in affluent districts. One of the greatest predictors of learning is the training of the teacher. Affluent areas pay well, with good benefits, and have smaller class sizes on average. That means teachers can assess more accurately and teach to the individual needs of their students.”
Christopher Meidl, Ph.D. – Associate Professor, Duquesne University
“Many variables contribute to school quality like school climate, school environment, parental and community wealth and engagement in the school, and per-pupil expenditure. Per pupil expenditure is a reflection of the quantity and quality of resources available for school districts and schools to utilize.” Comfort O. Okpala, Ed.D – Professor, North Carolina A & T State University
What are the biggest educational challenges that have emerged during the pandemic, and which were the best strategies proposed in order to overcome them?
“Accountability of learning has been very difficult. We will see many students that will do well enough, even excel with the variation in learning over the past year. But there are many students (especially those who are marginalized or schools in marginalized areas) that need the physical, in-person experience of school to get their needs met. Schools provide stability for millions of children across the country. Teachers, lunch personnel, custodial people, and school staff provide consistency, role models, socio-emotional caring, and empathy for so many children. This next year must have a transition plan to get students used to the in-person experience again. Time for teachers and school personnel to do this transition will be very important.”
Christopher Meidl, Ph.D. – Associate Professor, Duquesne University
“The recent pandemic required many schools to move quickly to remote or hybrid learning in 2020. This challenged public schools to design new approaches and to shift their existing educational practices online. Teachers quickly redeveloped their curriculum by creating digital content that would primarily be delivered in a digital format. The need to train teachers in this new modality and provide supports for teachers during this time as well as finding ways to provide access to both teachers and students more equitably meant that equity in opportunity emerged as another significant challenge.”
Teresa Coffman, Ph.D. – Professor, University of Mary Washington
In evaluating the best and worst school systems, what are the top 5 indicators?
“As a school and district leader, I found that a natural way of looking at your education system is through the C’s of community, creativity, caring, connectivity, and competency. With such C’s find out how the school is the heart of the community. Ask questions such as, do they innovate and create programs that meet the aspirational needs of their learners? Do they create a culture of caring and a system of social-emotional supports for both student and adult learners? Do they have a system that develops and encourages continuous improvement with an all means all mindset?”
Frances Marie Gipson, Ph.D. – Clinical Associate Professor, Claremont Graduate University
“The following five key indicators tend to be used most often when considering a school system’s performance: student academic achievement; instructional quality; school climate; graduation and attendance rates; and satisfaction of teachers, administrators, staff, caregivers, and students.”
Teresa Coffman, Ph.D. – Professor, University of Mary Washington