This Washington Post analysis is a nice cut on the school comparison genre. It looks at elementary schools in the Washington, DC area and ranks them on the percentage of students reaching the "advanced" level on state tests. It doesn't help policymakers know which schools are closing the achievement gap or otherwise serving poor students well, but it does give upper middle class parents a sense of where to buy a home if they want Junior to be surrounded by high-scoring peers. (And I say upper-middle class for a reason; what I know of the neighborhoods surrounding most of these schools is that they are EXPENSIVE, even amidst the housing crisis.)
It's heartening to notice, by the way, that these schools have made impressive gains in boosting students to the advanced level, even if No Child Left Behind's incentives don't give them any reason to do so.
Advanced Scores on the Maryland School Assessment
More D.C. Area Scores: D.C. | Virginia |
| Rank | Elementary school | School system | Percent rated advanced in 2008 | Advanced percentage point gain since 2003 |
| 1. | Cold Spring | Montgomery |
77%
|
14
|
| 2. | Shipley's Choice | Anne Arundel |
77%
|
22
|
| 3. | Carderock Springs | Montgomery |
75%
|
25
|
| 4. | Chevy Chase | Montgomery |
73%
|
32
|
| 5. | Benfield | Anne Arundel |
70%
|
33
|
| 6. | Lakewood | Montgomery |
69%
|
19
|
| 7. | Wayside | Montgomery |
68%
|
19
|
| 8. | Mount Harmony | Calvert |
68%
|
43
|
| 9. | Travilah Elementary | Montgomery |
65%
|
23
|
| 10. | Bradley Hills | Montgomery |
65%
|
23
|
