As a continuation of my A to Z Education blog series I am continuing today with a neat site I found that allows you to find great schools! Well, actually it is more along the lines of comparing schools in your area to each other in hopes of finding the one you think is great.
As a teacher who is concerned about where her children are educated, this site, Great Schools, is one that I see as nothing but helpful. Matter of fact, if and when we move again, I plan on putting this site to good use.
What do I like about this site when looking for great schools for my children? First, if you choose the state you are looking for, you may then go on and put in the district you want to look at further. You may also choose two schools from different districts to compare. Let’s face it though, in large school districts you will see big differences in several schools based on where the school is located throughout that city.
After you have put in the district and what age level you wish to compare, up will pop all the schools from that level (such as elementary, middle school or high school). There is then information on each school that shows standardized test scores. In my case, I was researching Iowa schools and the tests were ITBS (Iowa Test of Basic Skills), other states may have different standardized tests given to all students.
Each school shows what that school scored on standardized tests, what percent of students receive free and reduced lunch and the ethnicity of each school’s population. I like being able to see the test scores because this is one way for me to see how the school is achieving. There is information about the teachers and the class size posted on this site, which is nice to know.
I also love the other big aspect of this site, the fact that parents and others can leave feedback about the school. It is nice to read opinions from others that are familiar with the school, especially if you are considering sending your child there.
What I also like about this site is the fact that it allows people moving into new areas a chance to see the good and the bad schools of the district. This may change where a family decides to purchase a house, if the school in that area isn’t up to par, someone may decide against buying a house in that area.
Are you looking for a great school in your district? If so, this site may be for you, or at least it may allow you some more information you may not have gotten from other research. After all this is a decision on where to send your child to school, you want to learn as much as possible and this site can help.