The New Jersey Department of Education has made the state’s School Performance Reports for the 2020-21 school year available online.
According to a press release from the department, COVID-19 had a significant impact on the way the department was able to measure school performance and student achievement for the 2019-20 and 2020-21 School Performance Reports.
Some data published in previous years is not available in the 2020-21 School Performance Reports, such as student growth.
However, the reports still contain a wide variety of information such as on student demographics; participation and performance in the SAT, PSAT and ACT assessments; course participation, including Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and dual enrollment courses; chronic absenteeism; discipline data; staff information; graduation and postsecondary rates; and district narratives, according to the press release.
“Despite disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, we are proud to continue to provide our school communities in New Jersey with a broad range of data,” Acting Commissioner of Education Angelica Allen-McMillan said.
“These reports offer a wealth of information to start conversations and increase engagement about how schools are providing equitable educational opportunities to all students,” she said.
The 2020-21 reports include changes that respond to stakeholder feedback and updated federal and state requirements, according to the press release. These changes include:
• New career and college readiness data, including Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and dual enrollment participation by student group and work-based learning participation;
• Additional graduation data that includes the six-year adjusted cohort graduation rate. Note that the department now uses a different methodology to calculate the federal graduation rate, as per a U.S. Department of Education directive, and the new School Performance Reports provide the graduation rate using both the prior calculation methodology and the one as directed by the federal department;
• Expanded staff data including staff counts and information about teachers by subject area, as requested by stakeholders;
• New apprenticeship data that shows how many students register in apprenticeship programs after high school graduation;
• Links to additional data such as Start Strong assessment results and opportunity to learn data, which includes information about internet connectivity and device data during the 2020-21 school year.
The School Performance Reports and other supporting documents can be accessed on the department’s School Performance Reports website or www.njschooldata.org