State education officials are poring over the results of a report known as Diplomas Count, found in the current edition of Education Week. Stan Johnson with the State Education Department says Diplomas Count is the result of the collection of data on graduation rates throughout the country in comparison to the rates in Missouri. The numbers, according to Diplomas Count, indicate the percentage of Missouri students graduating high school is 74.7 percent, compared to a national average of 69.6 percent. Johnson points out this method differs from the one used by Missouri and dozens of other states to calculate graduation rates. The Missouri method puts this state’s graduation rate at 84.4 percent. Johnson adds despite the good graduation levels, a lot of work needs to be done to increase the percentages of minorities graduating.
Related web sites:
Education Week