Re: Ratings of US High Schools

[WMZEMKA@aol.com]

In a message dated 5/8/2006 2:55:38 PM Eastern Standard Time, 
rrhake@earthlink.net writes:
Each year for the past few years, Newsweek has made a big splash with 
its annual rankings/ratings of high schools ... which can be found 
here:

<http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12532668/site/newsweek/>
***This ranking of high schools just shows, once again, how simplistic 
ratings are so readily accepted by the general public as truth.    With Mathews' 
formula, high schools with a high attrition rate have an advantage over schools 
that hold onto their kids. AP courses are generally 11th and 12th grade classes 
and by then, in many of Virginia's school divisions, a large chunk of kids 
are gone (to see what percentage of kids are lost by school divisions, go to 
http://www.solreform.com/2005%20graduates.htm).  The formula Mathews uses is 
flawed (and his challenge would probably be to offer up another formula).  
Formulas and rankings and list of "bests" are very misleading.  
To look more closely at one of the VA schools to make the list, Maury High 
school (ranked 616) in Norfolk, there were 729 9th graders which shrunk to 327 
seniors four years later (that doesn't mean graduates; that's just the number 
of seniors on Sept 30).  Hard to believe they are one of the nation's best 
schools.  Maybe they are good at pushing kids. Pushing some out; pushing some into 
AP? 
Mickey