The 22nd edition of Quality Counts 2018: Report and Rankings focuses on state-by state assessment of public education. The report aims to illuminate what the high-performing states did well, how low-performers are approaching improvement, and lessons for boosting the quality of k-12 education overall. The nation received a grade of C overall with a score of 74.5, about the same as last year, when it posted a 74.2, also a C grade.
Photographers on assignment for Education Week visited schools in three of the states.
Starkville Early Learning Collaborative- Starkville, Miss.
Though Mississippi scored 49th in the nation overall, the state ranked relatively high on indicators for preschool and kindergarten enrollments.
East Allegheny High School- North Versailles, Pa.
Eighth-ranked Pennsylvania was a leader in getting larger portions of its student body into and through college.
Washington Elementary School–Valley City, N.D.
North Dakota, which ranked 15th in this year’s report, has wrestled with budget issues, but is credited with maintaining funding for programs such as arts instruction, personalized technology, physical education, and nutrition.
