Email, Andy Canales, director, Center for Social Measurement & Evaluation, Children at Risk, Jan. 24, 2018
From: Selby, Gardner (CMG-Austin)
Sent: Wednesday, January 24, 2018 10:19 AM
Subject: Urgent queries for a fact-check, how Texas ranks in public education
Folks:
Mindful of your focus, we’re reaching out to see what Children At Risk considers the most legitimate state-by-state rankings of public school systems.
This came up because we’re fact-checking candidate Andrew White’s claim that Texas ranks 43rd for education. He’s drawing on the Quality Counts rankings by Education Week, the latest of which places Texas 40th.
What does Children At Risk consider a solid ranking of school systems by state?
Any thoughts on the Quality Counts approach?
As ever, we count on attributable on-the-record information for our stories. We hope to complete this review today.
Thanks,
g.
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W. Gardner Selby
Reporter / News
Austin American-Statesman
PolitiFact Texas
3:28 p.m.
Thank you for reaching out to us. While Children at Risk does not regularly compare schools and school systems at a Federal level, we do understand and advocate for the factors that make for a good school and a high quality public education system. We have worked with Education Week in the past, and respect a lot of the work they produce.
In the Quality Counts report, Education Week evaluates factors such as a child’s chance for success – this includes indicators such as enrollment in early education and Pre-K programs, student achievement on standardized tests, and high school graduation rates. These are also things that Children at Risk considers when estimating a student’s long-term success and college/career readiness. Education Week also considers additional factors such as school finance, which according to their analysis, Texas receives a D+ for this index. We know through various studies that Texas consistently ranks in the bottom in the country for per pupil spending in education. As a whole, the Quality Counts report seems to be a sound study and in line with research by Children at Risk and other institutions.
Best,
Andy
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Andy Canales
Director, Center for Social Measurement & Evaluation
CHILDREN AT RISK | www.childrenatrisk.org