Dobela Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 I'm sure I could figure it out by reading the site, but do you know already? For our school districts the ratings were determined as "Based on its state test results, it has received a GreatSchools Rating of " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Here, 4-6 Our Little Rock neighborhhood, 3-5 The magnet school we lived near in LA, 9. For someone who needs a bit of extra help and cannot afford tutoring and does not have the ability to do it themselves, I think the schools here are better than the magnet school that got a 9. From talking to friends here, the schools seem to do a good job reaching the average student and making sure everyone knows what is going on. We were friends with a family that went to the magnet school in LA, a single mom whose first language was not English. One child needed phonics help, the school did nothing for him. The other child normally excelled at everything and got 90 to 100 percent in every test for all subjects. She failed her fraction and decimal homework and tests for an entire month, the school did nothing. It was a very simple misunderstanding about a few things about fractions and decimals and percents that took me less than an hour to get her back up to working at her normal 90 to 100 percent level. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littlefurfamily Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 said like Charlie Brown....I got a one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KidsHappen Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 (edited) Our elementary and middle score a 10 while the high school scores a 9. We are supposed to have the best schools in the state and some of the best in the country. I have to admit that I am impressed with the curriculum. They use a lot of the exact same things I did. The teachers are pretty good too but I have other problems with the school and well, PS in general. Edited February 24, 2011 by KidsHappen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RahRah Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Man, no wonder my husband thinks Public School isn't that bad. All of the schools he went to are a 9 or 10. I just looked at the ps I attended - from elementary through HS...10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaKinVA Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 (edited) Ours gets a 6 overall, but gets a 1 for students with disabilities and a 3 for economically disadvantaged children. They don't have a rating for GT kids, but that would probably be a 3 (based upon my personal experience with the school). They do fine with average kids. The parent's opinions, though, are "off the charts" for this school. If you talk to most of them, they are just shocked that we would choose something different from this "great" school. Then, I tell them I was TOLD by the school to make this choice and they just :001_huh:. In all honesty, a "6" is probably generous. They'd be lucky to get a 3 from me. :lol: My favorite elementary school (growing up) is only a 6, too. But the whole demographics of the area have changed completely. The high school I would have attended in CA is an 8, the high school I attended in GA is a 10, and the high school I attended in FL is a 5 (that's the one I essentially repeated my 8th grade curricula for the 3rd year in row and I opted to go home for the rest of high school). Edited February 24, 2011 by LisaK in VA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
v-girl Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 The elem we can see from our front yard (on the next block) is a 9, as is the only high school in town (also down the street). The middle school (again, on our street) is a 10. We're in one of the fastest-growing DFW suburbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Dulcimeramy Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Thing is, we can't compare much across states. Bill's school is a 10 in California. My school is a 3 in Indiana. The rankings are based on each state's standardized tests, and IN and CA use different tests. Overall, IN's schools are worse than CA's and CA's standards, at least in math, are higher than IN's. So I guess Bill's 10 is even farther from my 3 than it seems at first glance. from greatschools.org's FAQ: "What do GreatSchools Ratings tell me? Our ratings provide an overview of a school's test performance by comparing the school's state standardized test results to those of other schools in the state. Ratings are given for each grade and student category (gender, ethnicity or other student group) for which test results are available. Keep in mind that when comparing schools using GreatSchools Ratings, it's important to factor in other information, including the quality of each school's teachers, the school culture, special programs, etc." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
littleWMN Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Our elementary school is brand new this year and not ranked yet, but has a high parental involvement rate and I expect it will be ranked highly next year. I have a daughter in preK here. I homeschool my two older children. The middle school is a 2. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TN Mama Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 The elementary school we are zoned for is a 9. The other two are 10. The middle school is a 9 and the high school a 10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephanier.1765 Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 The elementary school is a 6 but more interesting to me is the high school (3) since he is that age. I'm so glad he is not at that gang infested school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 I'm curious, if you go to http://www.greatschools.org and search for your local elementary school. How does it rank? Bill Just looking at the scores for the schools in our area, I can tell you that I would not rely on that site. One of the schools KNOWN to be terrible was given a "five star" rating and one of the top schools was given a "one star" rating. Sorry, but I know about both of these schools and those ratings are backwards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovin Learnin Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Elementary - 9 Middle - 9 High - 10 The elementary schools are still not a great fit for us, though. But we do love the high school and DD may return at that time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Elementary - 9 Middle - 9 High - 10 The elementary schools are still not a great fit for us, though. But we do love the high school and DD may return at that time. Where are you seeing these other numbers? I see green shields, an occasional red 1 or 2, and an optional up to five star rating system. (nm...I refreshed and am now seeing them. But the private schools just have a green shield) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kokotg Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Elementary school: 9 high school (the one DH teaches at): 10 (it's mostly because of him, of course ;)) Doesn't surprise me; I grew up mostly in this school district and had a decent experience (and the school district has gotten more wealthy overall since I was a kid). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted February 24, 2011 Author Share Posted February 24, 2011 Just looking at the scores for the schools in our area, I can tell you that I would not rely on that site. One of the schools KNOWN to be terrible was given a "five star" rating and one of the top schools was given a "one star" rating. Sorry, but I know about both of these schools and those ratings are backwards. Not "stars" those are proving highly unreliable, it is the "number" ranking. This may be imperfect as well (how could it not be?) but this the number we are looking for in this informal poll. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Imprimis Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 The elementary, middle, and highschool my 3 kids would attend are all rated 9. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parrothead Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 The current school where dd would be now - 7. Which is what I voted. The last school -4 The one before that - 5 The one before that - a 2 or a 3 depending on district which I don't remember at this point. We homeschool for academics. But we also homeschool for continuity. How knows how the next school will score. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ali in OR Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 9 for our neighborhood school. Most of the schools in town are 8 or 9. I too question the criteria as our amazing core knowledge elementary school with a wait list to get in and with students winning all kinds of academic contests is rated lower than our more ordinary neighborhood school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingersmom Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Our elementary school gets a 9 and our middle and high school get a 10. We are #1 in the state so I am not surprised. When you teach to the test that is,what happens. Add in some bullying (lucky us made the 6 pm news and the NYTimes) , awful teachers, overcrowded schools and there is your 10. My daughter was a product of this 10 rated school and I needed to do serious work to bring her up to grade level. If parents can afford it they leave for private school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lovin Learnin Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Where are you seeing these other numbers? I see green shields, an occasional red 1 or 2, and an optional up to five star rating system. Hmm...I'm not sure I understand your question. Perhaps my laziness confused you. What I should have said was Our elementary and middle schools scored a 9 and our high school scored a 10. Is that what you meant? Maybe I'm still confused. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spy Car Posted February 24, 2011 Author Share Posted February 24, 2011 Where are you seeing these other numbers? I see green shields, an occasional red 1 or 2, and an optional up to five star rating system. (nm...I refreshed and am now seeing them. But the private schools just have a green shield) Has to be public schools. The private schools don't get "number" ranks. Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edithcrawley Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 All the elementary schools in my hometown (except 1 out in the rural area), ranked between 8 and 10, majority of them were 10's, as were the intermediate and junior high schools. The high schools in the district were not rated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FairProspects Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 9 for our neighborhood school. Most of the schools in town are 8 or 9. I too question the criteria as our amazing core knowledge elementary school with a wait list to get in and with students winning all kinds of academic contests is rated lower than our more ordinary neighborhood school. Funny, my High School was in OR too. I wonder if the OAKS is a really difficult test or something? :confused: That, or the independent nature of Oregonians makes them less likely to teach to the test and so they don't score as well on standardized tests. The OR scores definitely seem off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stormy weather Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kchara Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 The elementary school here rates a 10, but the parent comments are less than stellar. :tongue_smilie: The high school rates an 8. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
historically accurate Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 The school we're zoned for is a 2. I knew it was bad, but wowsers! The other elementary schools in the district rank a 4, 7, 7, 6, 6, and 7. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyB Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Ours is a 4. I checked these rankings a couple of years ago. It happened to be the week I decided to homeschool. Hmm... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RamonaQ Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Elem. and MS are 10-- is that good? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommaduck Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Has to be public schools. The private schools don't get "number" ranks. Bill Local highschool scored a two and the elementary schools were between one and three. (apparently the stars are subjective...the scores though tell the real story) The better scoring schools are, of course, in the wealthier suburbs. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mejane Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 We have several, but only one was ranked - a 9. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 10. I live in a suburb white flight built. If test scores were my only concern, I'd have little to complain about my local school. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
iona Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 we live in a town of around 17,000 and there is only one public school option. instead of having several elementary schools they divide them by grade. so all of the pk/k go to one school, all of the first graders are in another school, etc. the great school rating was n/a for the one we'd be using (pk/k). 1st grade is n/a as well. the one for 2/3 grade is rated 3, 4-5 grade is rated 6, 6th is rated 8, 7-8 is rated 7, the highschool is rated at 9. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chicagoshannon Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 We're supposedly in a "good" district. The 2 schools (I'm not sure which one she'd go to. They're right across the street from each other) are ranked 5 and 6. That just reaffirmed our decision to not send our kids there! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wheres Toto Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Our local elementary is a K-8 school and ranks a 9. Our high school ranks a 10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ElizabethB Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 we live in a town of around 17,000 and there is only one public school option. instead of having several elementary schools they divide them by grade. so all of the pk/k go to one school, all of the first graders are in another school, etc.the great school rating was n/a for the one we'd be using (pk/k). 1st grade is n/a as well. the one for 2/3 grade is rated 3, 4-5 grade is rated 6, 6th is rated 8, 7-8 is rated 7, the highschool is rated at 9. That is a really interesting set up. What are most people's major likes and dislikes about the set up? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yellowperch Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Our high school is a 10. I would have ranked it a 6. I hate to know what is 6 would really be like. The school committee is doing away with B levels for budget reasons. (The school currently places students in one of three tiers--b level, a level and honors.) If you say the school comittee is doing away with A levels, most of its members object. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Heather in WI Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Elementary - 4, Middle - 5, High School - 4 Less than a mile away, but across the county line they are 10, 10, 10 :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dani3boys Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Our elementary school ranked 7, and our high school ranked 9. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
texasmama Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 The elementary school we are zoned to ranked a 2. I am not surprised. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
annlaura Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 The local elementary school is a 4. Not surprised. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiewindmomma Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Our district allocates $11,000+/student a year, but "our" elementary (based on where we live) is a 6, the other nearby elementary 1/2 a mile away is a 7. "Our" jr. high is a 7, and "our" high school is a 6. There are schools that are 1s in my town. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daisy Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 A 5, but most of the local schools ranked a 2. My husband's school (one of the best in the entire district and with a long waiting list) only ranked a 7. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prairiebird Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 1-3 for all the schools. But I'm basically in a ghetto, so that's probably why. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FaithManor Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 It's a whomping 4.... and only one elementary school scored higher than that with three scoring lower. This is a rural county so there are seven elementary schools in the entire county. Five was the best score. However, a couple of the high schools were given 7's. I can kind of see that score, KIND OF, for one of them. The other one is an inflated grade for certain. One county over, there is a school district that received a 1 for every building. To be honest with you, that it did not receive a negative number or a zero is an inflated grade too. Less than 60% of each freshman class will actually graduate high school. Of course, scores like these can be, like standardized tests, not a true indicator of everything going on in the building. So, it's possible our elementary school is somewhat better than the score indicates. Although, from the horror stories in the local newspaper and yacked about in the grocery store, plus the verbal free for-alls I've seen at school board meetings, my guess is that the score is very close to true or possibly generous. Faith Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Virg Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 From what I have heard the OAKS test is not hard. OR is definitely not at the top in rankings but not at the bottom either. This site you can find the rankings for grades and subjects, if you click on table after you find the state you want and subject it makes the rank much more clear. http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/states/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TechWife Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Year Round Elementary - 8 Traditional Schedule Elementary - 9 Year Round Middle - 10 Traditional Middle - 10 Traditional High School - 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smithie Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 9 for the school we're zoned for, 10 for the "choice school" I hope to use next year. We're very lucky - a pocket of yuppiedom in a howling wilderness of poverty and institutional racism. But honestly, using the term "lucky" to describe "access to good schools" is pretty darn sad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happypamama Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Our district rates a 5; the other 5 districts in our county rate either a 5 or 6. The last time I saw a ranking for how our state's districts fared on tests, all 6 county districts were right about in the middle, and our particular district was the highest of the bunch. (That's about what I figured; in our state, our county is just kind of nice and average, not the wealthiest/most crowded but not the poorest/emptiest either, which is largely why I like it.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jami Posted February 24, 2011 Share Posted February 24, 2011 Ours is a 3 and the community rating is 5 stars. The one rated a 9 not far from here has a 4 star community rating. You'd think they'd be happier they don't have a 3! :P Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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