°ÄÃÅÅܹ·ÂÛ̳

Special Report
Student Achievement From Our Research Center

Schools Straddle the Pandemic and Familiar Headwinds in Quest to Boost Quality

September 01, 2021 1 min read
Illustration of C letter grade
  • Save to favorites
  • Print
Email Copy URL

This third and final installment of °ÄÃÅÅܹ·ÂÛ̳’s annual Quality Counts report card on the nation’s schools lands at a time of frustration and uncertainty for educators welcoming students back for another school year dominated by COVID-19’s disruption.

School and district leaders are in the spotlight as never before, making high-stakes decisions about students’ health and safety with parents, politicians, and the public looking over their shoulders. At the same time, they’re still responsible for moving the needle on student achievement despite stubborn, baked-in challenges involving equity, resources, bureaucracy, and unprecedented societal friction.

That tension is reflected in the latest report, which quantifies the strengths and weaknesses of the nation’s K-12 system based on federal data and other sources, and digs into how the pandemic is affecting families of school-age children in ways that reverberate in the classroom and beyond.

The report’s centerpiece: the national and state-by-state summative grades and rankings. These are derived by the EdWeek Research Center from mostly pre-pandemic era data on school finance, K-12 achievement, and socioeconomic factors fundamental to lifelong success, academic and otherwise.

Complementing that annual report card is analysis of a U.S. Census Bureau Household Pulse survey from April, at a time when schools had not yet closed for summer break, providing insights into how American families were faring in key areas including ed-tech and teacher as the 2020-21 school year came to an end.

For those seeking greater detail on how the nation and each of the states scored on the entire suite of indicators that make up their Quality Counts 2021 grades and rankings, download the EdWeek Research Center’s exclusive State Highlights Reports.
— The Editors

Related Tags:

In March 2024, °ÄÃÅÅܹ·ÂÛ̳ announced the end of the Quality Counts report after 25 years of serving as a comprehensive K-12 education scorecard. In response to new challenges and a shifting landscape, we are refocusing our efforts on research and analysis to better serve the K-12 community. For more information, please go here for the full context or learn more about the EdWeek Research Center.

A version of this article appeared in the September 01, 2021 edition of °ÄÃÅÅܹ·ÂÛ̳ as Schools Straddle the Pandemic and Familiar Headwinds in Quest to Boost Quality

Events

Artificial Intelligence K-12 Essentials Forum Big AI Questions for Schools. How They Should Respond 
Join this free virtual event to unpack some of the big questions around the use of AI in K-12 education.
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of °ÄÃÅÅܹ·ÂÛ̳'s editorial staff.
Sponsor
School & District Management Webinar
Harnessing AI to Address Chronic Absenteeism in Schools
Learn how AI can help your district improve student attendance and boost academic outcomes.
Content provided by 
This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of °ÄÃÅÅܹ·ÂÛ̳'s editorial staff.
Sponsor
Science Webinar
Spark Minds, Reignite Students & Teachers: STEM’s Role in Supporting Presence and Engagement
Is your district struggling with chronic absenteeism? Discover how STEM can reignite students' and teachers' passion for learning.
Content provided by 

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.

Read Next

Student Achievement 'Sharp, Steep Declines': U.S. Students Are Falling Behind in Math and Science
And among American students, gaps among high and low performers are growing wider.
4 min read
Business, united states, chart, deterioration, america, american, flag, falling, economic, economy, decrease, decline, global, inflation, recession, market, drop, arrow, downward, forecast
iStock/Getty
Student Achievement Tutors Don't Get Much Training. A New Effort Could Help
For intensive tutoring to reach its potential, tutors may need more training to work with students and teachers.
3 min read
High school tutor giving male student one to one tutoring at a desk
iStock/Getty Images Plus
Student Achievement How Motivated Are Students to Drive Their Own Learning?
An international test of students in more than 80 countries and economies finds that many struggle with motivation.
4 min read
Unhappy young African American hipster guy in eyeglasses looking in distance, feeling bored preparing for examination or doing high school research project on computer, sitting at table in library.
iStock/Getty Images
Student Achievement Spotlight Spotlight on MTSS
This Spotlight explores key aspects of MTSS implementation, including its relationship to special education and effectiveness in improving student outcomes.