What are the Best High Schools in America? Top 15 Ranked Schools

A report from U.S. News & World Report reveals the top-rated high schools in America, but it is not without its share of accolades and controversy. Today, the rankings continue to attract national attention, with U.S. News annually evaluating thousands of public high schools using updated measures of college readiness, state assessment performance, graduation rates, and underserved student achievement. While some schools celebrate their inclusion on the list, others are left scratching their heads, wondering how and why they were selected among so many excellent high schools across the country.

Parents should remember that rankings are just one tool for evaluating schools alongside school culture, academic offerings, extracurricular activities, and student support services. For additional guidance, read 10 Tips for Choosing the Best High School for Your Child.

Three Steps to the Top-Ranked Schools

The creation of the U.S. News list was originally achieved through a three-step process implemented by the American Institutes for Research (AIR). While the methodology has evolved over the years, it continues to focus on objective measures of school performance and college readiness.

1. First, the publication looked at student performance by weighing math and reading scores on state high school proficiency tests against the percentage of economically disadvantaged students at the school. Schools that scored statistically higher than the state average were evaluated through the next step in the process.

2. Next, U.S. News and AIR looked at whether the least advantaged students were performing at a higher rate than the state average.

In an attempt to stop school closures across New York City, teacher unions took their case to the courtroom, highlighting a dispute that continues to shape school restructuring policies today. At the time, union members called the closure of 24 schools a “sham,” arguing it was used by city leadership to sidestep contractual protections for teachers. City officials maintained that the closures were necessary to raise academic performance, a rationale that continues to influence school turnaround strategies in New York City today.

The Plan to Close Schools

The school closure plan was initiated when the Panel for Educational Policy voted to close 24 underperforming schools, part of a broader reform effort that has since evolved into more targeted intervention models. According to reporting from NY1, new schools were slated to open in the same buildings that academic year, operating under new names and leadership. Teachers and principals working in those schools were required to reapply for positions, a controversial practice that has since been modified in later New York City Department of Education staffing policies. City officials estimated that only about half of the existing staff would be rehired, with the remainder replaced by new applicants.

Because the buildings would technically house new schools, officials argued that existing contractual obligations would not apply, a legal interpretation that has been challenged in subsequent policy debates. This allows the city to move forward with plans to get rid of ineffective teachers, replacing them with stronger applicants. The

As summer vacation approaches, kids are gearing up for the season with little regard for the academics they will leave behind when the backpacks are hung up for the year. On the other hand, parents and teachers often worry about the loss of important skills throughout the summer months, which must be retaught once school rings in again. For parents intent on avoiding the academic summer slide, there are a number of ways to keep kids’ brains in the game, even as they are looking forward to their break from the classroom.

This video offers tips to avoid the summer slump.

Keep Them Reading

Studies have shown that kids can lose up to 25 percent of their reading skills over the summer months, which can have a significant impact on their ability to get back into the school swing in the fall. A report at mLive shows that income disparity widens the reading gap over the summer even more. Children in low-income households consistently lose more than two months of reading ability each summer. In contrast, children in middle to upper-income homes may remain steady or gain skills during vacation.

Scholastic Books cites research that shows reading just six books over the summer can keep students on track when they return to the classroom. One way to ensure your kids keep reading all summer long is to schedule regular trips

Most educators, parents, and students would agree that sexual harassment is a particularly devastating form of bullying that can negatively impact a student’s academic performance, as well as the physical, emotional, and mental health of the student. The definition of sexual harassment, according to the Free Dictionary states, “Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature that tends to create a hostile or offensive environment.” As one six-year-old Colorado boy discovered, sexual harassment also apparently knows no boundaries in terms of the age of the perpetrator or the victim.

This video explains what sexual harassment is.

The Story of D’Avonte Meadows

D’Avonte Meadows is a first-grader at Sable Elementary in Aurora. The six-year-old was recently suspended from school for three days, after being accused of sexual harassment and disrupting other students. The crime? Allegedly, Meadows was singing a line from an LMFAO song, “I’m Sexy and I Know It,” to a female classmate while waiting in the lunch line at his school.

According to a report at the Washington Post, Meadows was sent home from school after the incident, along with a letter from the school district to his mother, explaining why he was suspended. School officials would not comment on the case initially, but did point out the definition of sexual harassment according to school board policy, which called

With technology becoming a major component in all aspects of life today, it should be no surprise that this trend is hitting the public school sector as well. One way that technology is changing the face of education is through how information is distributed – through electronic means, rather than the traditional textbook. While more students are turning to the screen rather than turning pages, the verdict is still out on whether digital textbooks have what it takes to replace traditional books for good.

Defining the Digital Textbook

Students are tossing traditional textbooks with paper pages in favor of looking up their information on the computer, Kindle or iPad. These devices offer the ability to rent digital versions of the same textbooks, which are accessible through any online device. In some cases, digital textbooks can be accessed for free, if they are part of the public domain in cyberspace. Teachers, as a general rule, do not mind if students use the electronic or the traditional model of the textbook, as long as it delivers the same information and students remain focused on the task at hand, rather than surfing the Internet during class time.

“Kids are wired differently these days,” Sheryl R. Abshire, chief technology officer for the Calcasieu Parish School System in Lake Charles, Louisiana, told the New York Times. “They’re digitally nimble. They multitask, transpose and extrapolate. And they