A new ranking of school systems in the United States shines a light on Texas’ subpar academics.
WalletHub recently published an analysis of school systems across the country. Using 32 key metrics, an overall ranking was established, plus two others focusing specifically on quality and safety.
Massachusetts came out on top, followed by Connecticut, Maryland, New Jersey, and Wisconsin.
Texas fared better in the overall ranking, landing at No.29 with a score of 49.86 out of 100 compared to Massachusett’s 74.36 out of 100. While the Lone Star State’s school system ranked No.19 in terms of safety, it was considered a lowly No.32 in terms of quality.
WalletHub investigated the teacher-pupil ratio found at public schools, students’ average SAT and ACT scores, performance on math and reading tests, and dropout rates.
Texas performed middling in terms of its percentage of licensed or certified public K-12 teachers (No.29) and pupil-teacher ratio (No.31). Its worst performances were in its funding of public schools (No.46) and the percentage of threatened or injured high school students (No.40).
Moreover, Texas schools had the sixth highest rate of bullying in the country.
Despite the number of security measures taken by both state and district officials, North Texas saw violence at several school campuses.
In April, a 17-year-old named Julian Howard allegedly fatally shot 18-year-old Etavion Barnes at Arlington ISD’s Bowie High School. Both young men were students, as covered in The Dallas Express.
The shooting was preceded by another just one week earlier at Dallas ISD’s Wilmer-Hutchins High School. A 17-year-old student named Ja’kerian Rhodes-Ewing allegedly shot a fellow student in the upper thigh on campus.
Academically, the study found that Texas students ranked No.42 in reading test scores and No.18 in math test scores. Texas students also had the eighth-highest dropout rate of all other states.
This mirrors the recent STAAR test results released by the Texas Education Agency. As previously covered in The Dallas Express, alarming drops in math and science were seen statewide despite a slight increase in reading scores.
In Spring 2024, at Dallas ISD, only 18% of students met grade level in grade 5 science, and only 7% did so in grade 7 math.
Overall, Dallas ISD students’ scores show little progress since the 2021-2022 school year, when just 41% scored at grade level or above on their STAAR exams. This is the last available TEA accountability report since ongoing litigation has blocked the 2023 release. As such, little is currently known about the districts’ performance in terms of college readiness.
WalletHub found that work remains to prepare students in the Lone Star State for college. Students’ median ACT scores ranked No.34 nationwide, whereas their median SAT scores ranked No.40.