Charlotte NC Schools Progress Reports Make Comparing Individual Schools Easy

All public Charlotte NC schools are part of a countywide system known as Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools (CMS).  Over the past several years, CMS has developed an evaluation and reporting system for each of its schools that incorporates more than the traditional test scores that parents typically use to compare schools. This system culminates in a School Progress Report for each school.  The 2008-2009 School Progress Reports were just published online and can be found at the CMS website.

What can you learn from the CMS School Progress reports that will help you find the schools that best meet your child's needs?  Each report includes the following information:

• a letter from the principal describing the school's strengths and weaknesses and plans for improvement over the coming year.
• key facts about the school, including school population and demographics.
• the school's progress toward key performance measures identified in the CMS 2010 Strategic Plan.
• Pass rates on the federal and state tests and testing growth comparisons.

I took a look at the progress reports for two of the Charlotte NC schools in Matthews NC:  Matthews Elementary School and David W. Butler High School.  Here are some of the things I learned about these two schools.

• Matthews Elementary had 88.6% of its students performing at or above grade level compared with 72% last year.
• Twenty seven percent of the teachers at Matthews Elementary were National Board-certified teachers.
• Ninety five percent of Matthews Elementary parents thought that Matthews is a safe school.
• Eighty eight percent of Matthews Elementary parents were satisfied overall with the school compared with 86% last year.
• Matthews Elementary made Adequate Yearly Progress meeting 21 of 21 goals set by the federal No Child Left Behind Act.
• On the North Carolina ABCs testing/assessment program, Matthews Elementary students had a proficiency of 88.6%.
• At Butler High School, the pass rate on Advanced Placement tests was 84.6%
• The participation rate in Advanced Placement courses at Butler High School was 96.5%.
• Butler High School's graduation rate was 80.1%.
• Butler High School's average SAT score was 1553 above both national and state averages.

Learn more about Charlotte NC schools and living in Charlotte NC and area small towns.

Copyright 2009.  Carol Fox.  Allen Tate Real Estate.  *Charlotte NC Schools Progress Reports Make Comparing Individual Schools Easy*