Providing High School Feedback Bridging the divide between K–12 and postsecondary education.

To find out more, visit www.DataQualityCampaign.org/PolicyIssues.

Why This Matters There is an increased focus on success in college and careers:

> Educators, administrators, system leaders, and policymakers are all working to ensure that students graduate high school, complete college,1 and find employment.

Stakeholders need feedback to improve college- and career-readiness efforts: > To improve their efforts, stakeholders—from policymakers to principals—need information to measure their progress in

preparing students for success in college and beyond. > When this information is provided to schools and districts, it is referred to as high school feedback. It can be disseminated

through various methods, including mail, public websites, and secure portals. > As a result of federal requirements, including the State Fiscal Stabilization Fund program and ESEA waivers, states are now

required to publicly report feedback data by high school.

Only collaboration among state policy leaders, together with K–12 and postsecondary communities, will get these data in the hands of stakeholders: > Leveraging their investments in statewide longitudinal data systems, states are better positioned than local entities to link

data from multiple systems, provide analysis, and disseminate information to stakeholders in usable forms. > This work requires state leadership to ensure effective collaboration across sectors and meet stakeholder needs.

Just the Facts Q: How many states are producing high school feedback reports, and how many are meeting stakeholder needs with transparent, actionable, and timely data? A:

Q: Who owns the production and dissemination of high school feedback reports? A: There is no blueprint for producing and disseminating these reports. States utilize a variety of entities to develop high school feedback reports and do not consistently leverage their statewide longitudinal data system to produce these reports.

28 states produce high school feedback reports through higher education agencies (17 states) or state K–12 education agencies (11 states).

6 states rely on the National Student Clearinghouse to support the production of these reports. 6 states use other avenues2 to produce high school feedback reports.

1 For the purposes of this factsheet, college includes traditional two- and four-year degree granting institutions and alternative types of postsecondary education, such as certificate programs. 2 Most of these states indicate that they rely on their P–20 council to produce high school feedback reports.

29 states produce these reports by high school. (actionable)

24 states use recent data (since 2010) in the reports. (timely)

47 states produce high school feedback reports by high school or by district.

38 states make these reports publicly available. (transparent)

Providing High School Feedback

The Data Quality Campaign’s Data for Action is a series of analyses that highlight state progress and key priorities to promote the effective use of data to improve student achievement. For more information, and to view Data for Action 2012: DQC’s State Analysis, please visit www.DataQualityCampaign.org. Scan the QR code for supplementary materials.

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17

20

20

34

38

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

Employment outcomes

Average Postsecondary GPA

Credit Accumulation

Degree or Certificate completion

Remediation

College Enrollment

Number of states

Q: What kinds of information are included in these feedback reports? A: Feedback reports include a variety of indicators about students’ success in college and careers, including the following:

States to Watch Hawaii’s report is clear and concise. It is easily accessible on the state’s P–20 partnerships site. The report provides information

on college and career readiness by examining critical indicators, such as on-time college graduation rate. Kentucky provides straightforward high school feedback summary information on every high school in three-page reports with

graphical comparisons. The reports compare high school indicators to statewide averages and provide information on types of colleges and universities attended. Each report contains the most complete and accurate data for each high school regarding college-going high school graduates.

Alabama’s high school feedback is compiled into one document, allowing stakeholders to easily view their own school information and to compare it with peers. The state’s high school feedback report captures students that are enrolled at both full- and part-time status.

Related and Cited Resources Data Quality Campaign, State-by-State Analysis of High School Feedback Reports (2012). Data Quality Campaign, Creating Reports Using Longitudinal Data: How States Can Present Information to Support Student Learning and School

System Improvement (2010). Data Quality Campaign, Using Data to Increase College and Career Readiness: A Primer for State Policymakers (2011). Anne Hyslop, Data That Matters: Giving High Schools Useful Feedback on Grads' Outcomes (Education Sector, 2011). J.B. Schramm and E. Kinney Zalesne, Seizing the Measurement Moment: Why Now Is the Time for States to Help High Schools Get the

Postsecondary Data They Need and Want (College Summit, 2011). For more resources visit www.DataQualityCampaign.org/PolicyIssues or scan the QR code below.

LOOKING AHEAD States have a role in providing easy public access and support on how to understand high school feedback. Too often stakeholders

are unaware that these reports exist or do not know how to access or use them, minimizing the impact of this important information.

Because high school feedback requires linked data, states must establish P–20W data governance structures to guide the development and use of these reports. Once established, states can maximize stakeholder access and use of these reports to help ensure that students are successful in college and careers.

More work is necessary to understand students’ trajectories upon completing their postsecondary degrees. In 2012 only two states (Maine and Ohio) included information on student employment outcomes in their reports. This information is critical to understanding how students reach the ultimate goal of employment after graduation.