Massachusetts, for a second year in a row, took the top ranking, earning a B+ grade, while the nation received an overall grade of C, in a report by the national newspaper Education Week, which ranked state education systems based on statistical information.
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A spokeswoman for the state Department of Education did not respond to an email Wednesday seeking comment.
According to the report, Maryland ranks ninth in Chance for Success with a B, fourth in school finance with a B, and fifth in K-12 achievement with a C-plus.
Education Week released its 20th annual Quality Counts report Thursday, grading states on how well they prepare students for college and careers, how they fare in K-12 student achievement and how they manage their finances. Nevada ranked last this year.
The grades don’t look good for the Lone Star State. It closed the gap between poor and affluent students in 8th grade math scores by 2.5 percentage points, while the poverty gap in 4th grade reading scores grew by 6.6 percentage points.
The report didn’t take into account an increase in the state’s graduation rate, which passed 70 percent in 2015. That investigation also concluded that OR ranks No. 38 among states, partly because OR lags far behind the national average in classroom spending.
“For many, the very term “accountability” has become synonymous with testing, particularly the type of mandatory standardized assessments at the center of federally driven school accountability under the No Child Left Behind Act”, Education Week said in a news release.
■ Wisconsin earned its highest ranking, a 90.8, in the “early foundations” area of the chance for success criteria.
State education officials said Education Week altered its rubric a year ago and cut two broad categories from its equation: transitions and alignment, which focuses on state policies; and teaching profession, which focuses on teacher training, tenure, and other policies.
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Education Week is published by the nonprofit organization Editorial Projects in Education.
