State second-most improved since 2003

"Quality Counts 2007: From Cradle to Career, Connecting American Education from Birth to Adulthood" focuses on a number of measures that effect the chance for a child`s success throughout his lifetime. States are ranked on four broad categories: Chances for Success; Aligning Education from Cradle to Career; Elementary and Secondary Performance; and Standards, Assessment and Accountability. Up to two points were either awarded or subtracted depending on how close to the national average a state fell on each measure; states received a zero if the indicator fell right at the national average. In its State Achievement Index, which emphasizes levels of performance on a status basis as well as for changes over time, Arkansas ranked 29th; yet when looking solely at improvement over time, the state ranked second. This category included measures based on performance in reading and math, high school graduation rates and results of Advanced Placement exams. Arkansas` next highest ranking among other states was in the Aligning Education category, in which it was sixth. Arkansas ranked ninth in the Standards category, which considered the quality of states` course standards and how well they align with the states` benchmark exams. Arkansas ranked 39th in the Chances for Success index, being marked down on such factors as family income, parents` education, parental employment, middle school mathematics, postsecondary participation, adult educational attainment and annual income. The state received credit for having parents who speak fluent English and for high school graduation rates, and it received neutral scores for preschool enrollment, kindergarten enrollment and elementary reading. (Copyright 2006 Newsroom Solutions, LLC)