On-Time Graduation Rate
Why is Virginia switching to this new way of calculating a graduation rate for schools and school divisions?
Published graduation rates traditionally have been estimates with flaws that impact reliability. Including:
- 9th-grade enrollment vs. first-time freshman
- 9th-grade retention
- Student mobility
- Definition of a graduate
- The smaller the school or school division, the greater potential distortion
Additionally, graduation rates varied from state to state. In 2005, National Governors Association (NGA) Task Force on State High School Graduation Data presented a report defining a graduation rate providing ". a measure of on-time completion, with most students, but not all, expected to finish in four years" (www.nga.org/Files/pdf/0507GRAD.pdf). The nation's governors (led by then Virginia Governor Mark Warner) subsequently endorsed the formula.
As a result of the 2006 General Assembly's approval of House Bill 19, the Virginia Board of Education adopted a graduation-rate formula - mirroring the recommendations of the NGA Task Force - that will uniformly assess and report high school graduation rates at the state, division and school levels. The formula is based on a count of students who enter the system, and follows those students' progress in school.
House Bill 19 also requires VDOE to report the new cohort graduation rates beginning in 2008. State, division and school on-time graduation rates will be published for the first time in fall 2008 in the aggregate and disaggregated by student groups.
Can you compare this graduation rate with the graduation rates reported last year?
No, the two rates are not comparable. The rate calculated last year included students who did not complete high school in four years. The previous rate also did not account for those students who were thought to have transferred but in fact dropped-out of school.
What graduation rate will be used as an academic indicator for calculating whether Virginia high schools make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) toward the goals of No Child Left Behind (NCLB)?
While the Virginia On-Time Graduation Rate will appear on VDOE report cards for schools, school divisions and the Commonwealth, the estimated graduation rate adopted as part of Virginia's NCLB implementation plan will continue to serve as an academic indicator for calculating AYP ratings for the 2008-09 school year.
