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There鈥檚 no doubt about it: Schools around the country are working hard in the midst of increasingly complex obstacles. That鈥檚 why we鈥檝e designed GreatSchools Rating to give the most nuanced picture of school quality that available data allows.

If you鈥檙e wondering, Why did my school鈥檚 rating go down?, the answer is one of two reasons. Either your school鈥檚 data showed a decline in one or more of the areas we use to calculate our rating, or recent changes to our methodology caused your school鈥檚 rating to drop. Let鈥檚 take these one at a time.

1. Your school鈥檚 data showed a decline.

Our GreatSchools Rating is calculated by combining measurements, each of which reflects a different aspect of school quality. These ratings may vary from school to school based on data availability and school level. For example, high schools have a College Readiness Rating, while elementary schools don鈥檛. These ratings are updated as new data becomes available, which in turn may cause the school鈥檚 GreatSchools Rating to change. You can find details about data used for your school鈥檚 ratings on the school profile linked to 鈥淪ources.鈥�

Bottom line: If your school鈥檚 GreatSchools Rating went down, it could be because updated data caused one or more of the ratings described below to drop.

Student/Academic Progress Rating

Increasing evidence suggests that rather than just looking at end-of-year test scores, measuring student progress (also called student growth) is a more accurate way to see how much value a school is adding for its students. The Student/Academic Progress Rating measures whether students at a school are making academic progress over time, based on the change in their state test scores from one year to the next. The higher the growth rating, the more students are learning in tested subjects鈥攔egardless of where they started. You can read more about why growth data is so important, here.

Bottom line: If your school鈥檚 Student/Academic Progress Rating went down, this probably affected your school鈥檚 GreatSchools Rating.

Test Score Rating

This rating uses performance on state tests (the percentage of students scoring at or above proficiency) across grades and subjects, compared to other schools in the state. This rating is an important factor in understanding school quality because it helps reflect how well students are meeting the academic expectations set by each state.

Bottom line: If your school鈥檚 Test Score Rating went down, this probably affected your school鈥檚 GreatSchools Rating.

College Readiness Rating

This rating is designed to measure how well a high school is preparing students for success in college and career, compared to other high schools in the state. We calculate it based on high school graduation rates, college entrance exam scores, participation in advanced courses such as AP, IB, and dual enrollment classes, and AP test scores.

Bottom line: If your school鈥檚 College Readiness Rating went down, this probably affected your school鈥檚 GreatSchools Rating.

2. We revised our methodology, and that changed your school鈥檚 rating.

We are always striving to improve our methodology based on data availability. This leads us to sometimes add or subtract new measurements or give more or less weight to different kinds of information. When we revise the way we calculate a school鈥檚 ratings, the change in our methodology could explain the drop in your school鈥檚 rating.

Next steps for parents

A rating drop means your school has declined by at least one (and likely by more than one) measure of student success. What can you do? Start a conversation with your school leaders about serving all students.

Next steps for school leaders

Your school鈥檚 rating going down doesn鈥檛 mean that your hard work isn鈥檛 moving the needle on student achievement. But it does mean that there鈥檚 room for improvement. You know better than anyone that changing these outcomes needs to be a long, collaborative process, but understanding fundamentals like your students鈥� literacy and numeracy levels are valuable factors as you plan your strategies and motivate parents to partner with you to improve their children鈥檚 outcomes.