2013 School Report Cards Introduction visit: www.reportcards.conncan.

org
What does an A mean?
The state assigns each school a number between 0 and 100 to represent how many students
on average are performing on grade level. ConnCANs Report Card grades are based on that
number.
A - 88-100: The school meets the state goal. Nearly all students are on grade level
B - 79-87: The school performs above the state average, but below the state goal
C - 67-78: The school performs at or near the state average
D - 51-67: The school performs below the state average
F - 0-50: The school is far below the state average, most students are signicantly below
grade level
What data does ConnCAN use?
Our data comes from the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE) School
Performance Index (SPI) reports. We use a schools SPI, along with student enrollment data
from the CSDE, to rank and grade all public schools in Connecticut. We also use the states
student performance and enrollment data for specic groups of students, including:
African American
Hispanic
Low-Income
English Language Learner
What are ConnCANs Report Cards?
ConnCANs School Report Cards assign letter grades to
every school in Connecticut, to measure if our schools
are providing kids the education they deserve. Every
child deserves access to a high-quality education, no
matter where they live, but how do you dene quality?
ConnCAN developed standards based on the State
Department of Educations new performance measure in
order to accurately assess the level of student performance
at every school. Heres how we arrived at every schools
Report Card grade.
REPORT CARDS

INTRODUCTION
TO SCHOOL
REPORT CARDS

What is a Top 10 school?
We rank several high performance measures: the top overall schools, the schools with the
greatest improvement, and the schools with the best outcomes for each subgroup. Some lists
have fewer than 10 schools because there were less than 10 schools in the state that met our
standards. Every Top 10 school must:
Enroll more students than the state average for that group
Receive a grade of C or higher for that group
Perform among the top 10 schools in the state for that group
What is a Success Story school?
Success Story schools serve students in low-income communities and communities of color.
Students at these schools, with high percentages of minority or low-income students, are doing
better than the state average. To qualify, a school must:
Enroll more minority students and more low-income students than the state average
Perform above the overall state average for least one student group (for example, African
American, Hispanic, or low-income students)
Maintain a grade of C or higher overall, and for African American, Hispanic, and
low-income students
Wait! I dont see a grade for my school!
There are a few reasons why there might not be a grade for your school or for a specic group
within your school. For privacy reasons, the state only reports a score for a group of students
that is comprised of more than 20 students. This includes the diferent student group scores as
well, which is why some schools do not have grades for all categories.
We also do not report an improvement grade for schools with an overall grade of A, because
these schools are already meeting the states benchmark for success. If a school is new in 2013,
it wont have an improvement grade in 2013 or any information for 2012.
For more information, please visit: www.reportcards.conncan.org.
www.conncan.org (203) 772-4017 85 Willow St. New Haven CT 06511