Stats that Stick: March 14, 2012

Percent difference in graduation rates between students at SEO Scholars and NYC Public Schools: 28.

SEO Scholars program targets a handful of "severely undereducated" students and provides them with intense instruction to all but guarantee their graduation from a four-year college. The graduation rate from the SEO Scholars program is 91 percent, while New York Public Schools is 63 percent. The highly selective program requires students to sacrifice their Saturdays with classes being conducted from 8:30-4:30.

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Stats that Stick: March 7, 2012

Percent of teachers who are satisfied with their jobs: 44.

According to the "MetLife Survey of the American Teacher," teachers’ job satisfaction has decreased by 15 points since the survey assessed the issue in 2009. Forty-four percent of teachers reported they were very satisfied, the lowest rate MetLife has seen in 20 years. The report is a long-running survey of educators, parents, and students.

Number of times an African-American study is likely to be suspended or expelled versus Whites: 3.5.

Although black students made up only 18 percent of those enrolled in the schools sampled, they accounted for 35 percent of those suspended once, 46 percent of those suspended more than once and 39 percent of all expulsions, according to the Civil Rights Data Collection’s 2009-10 statistics. The new report released by the U.S. Department of Education underscores prolonged racial disparities in discipline in schools across the country.

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Stats that Stick: February 29, 2012

Estimated number of people in the United States born on Leap Day (February 29th): 205,000.

Every four years is a leap year. Leap years add one extra day to February due to an astronomical fact that the earth’s revolution around the sun equals 365.25 days not 365.00 like the Gregorian calendar follows. The probability of a leap day birthday is 1/1461, therefore, a leap day birthday on February 29 is the least probable of all birthdays. This means that less than 0.07% of the world’s population was born on a leap day.

Number of states that offer online public schools: 30.

The popularity of online public schools is increasing, along with its availability. Full-time public cyber schools are now an option in 30 states, allowing approximately 250,000 students in kindergarten through 12th grade to press buttons to raise their hands and message their teachers. However, many questions still remain about the quality of K12 education provided online

 

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Stats that Stick: February 22, 2012

Number of public schools in Chicago that are in danger of closing: 17

Community activists, parents, students and union leaders all across the Midwestern city are gathering at the headquarters of Chicago Public Schools to object to a reform package that includes closing or overhauling 17 struggling schools. They hope to pressure the board to reject the measure.

Number of public schools in New York that are in danger of closing: 33

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is seeking to close of 33 of the city’s struggling schools. In addition, city officials have called off plans to head to Albany, the state capitol, to petition the New York State Department of Education to restore federal funding for the schools. Read Entire Post

Stats that Stick: February 15, 2012

Percent of students who didn’t take an AP Exam despite being deemed qualified: 60

Even though their PSAT scores showed they could perform well on one, 60 percent of students of those students did not take an AP Exam. This is according to a College Board report released last week. The report also indicated that Black, Latino and Native American students were less likely to take AP exams than their White and Asian counterparts. The Alliance for Excellent Education explored the results of the report and what it means for students and parents in this article.

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Stats that Stick: February 8, 2012

Thanks to Digital Learning Day, Stats that Stick took a hiatus last week. But we're back with more education facts to satisfy your thirst for knowledge.

Percent of New Yorkers who disapprove of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's handling of public schools: 44

According to a new poll by Quinnipiac University, residents of New York city are more likely to trust teachers' unions rather than the mayor to advocate for students. Although respondents, in general, support the mayor’s proposals for higher salaries and teacher evaluations and removal, only 24 percent of respondents described the mayor's take-over of public schools as a success.

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Stats that Stick: January 25, 2012

In honor of the State of the Union Address, we bring you facts about this year's speech delivered by President Barack Obama. This was President Obama's third State of the Union Address (the speech during the first year of the presidency is not considered a State of the Union address). The speech was thirteen pages long and lasted exactly 65 minutes.

Average estimated grade level of the State of the Union speeches delivered by President Obama: 8.4

According to the University of Minnesota's Smart Politics, the President's speech rated at an 8th grade reading level based on the Flesch-Kincaid test. The test measures longer sentences and sentences utilizing words with more syllables to produce high scores. Shorter sentences and sentences with more monosyllabic words have lower scores. The test assesses the level of readability of written text through a formula that translates the score to a U.S. grade level. President Obama's score from last night's address was the third lowest score since 1934.

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Stats that Stick: January 18, 2012

Number of documents available in a new digital archive for the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: 200,000.

The Washington Post reports that thanks to the tireless efforts of the King Center Imaging Project, nearly 200,000 documents connected with the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. are now included in a new online archive that became available on Monday, the national holiday that honored the slain civil rights leader.

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Stats that Stick: January 4, 2012

The end of the year 2011 is sure to provide many new stats and numbers on American educational development. Enjoy the first of what is sure to be many exciting stats for the year 2012.

Amount of dollars (in millions) donated to the University of Maryland by entrepreneur William Polk Carey: 30.

The founder of a New York-based investment firm donated millions of his $11.8 billion fortune to numerous Universities and institutions around the country. Carey died recently at the age of 81. The businessman's many donations included $30 million to the University of Maryland law school, $50 million to John Hopkins University for the Carey School of Business, and $50 million Arizona State University.

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Stats that Stick: December 21, 2011

States that are seeking to limit the level of online interaction between teachers and students: 12.

California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Virginia all have school boards that are updating or are revising their social media policies this fall. Many of these reviews come after parents have complained of inappropriate materials posted on personal pages of teaching professionals.

States that will share $500 million in early-learning grant money from the "Race to the Top" competition: 9.

California, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, North Carolina, Ohio, Rhode Island and Washington will share money to aid the nation's youngest learners as part of President Obama's "Race to the Top" grant competition. The initiative had states competing for federal dollars to create programs that focus on K-12 education in order to make schools more effective. 

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