NCPA to Release 1st Annual Report Card on Texas Schools; Report Shows Actual Value Individual Schools Have on Student Performance

5/7/2003

From: Sean Tuffnell or Richard Walker, 800-859-1154 Email: stuffnell@ncpa.org both of the National Center for Policy Analysis

News Advisory:

The Dallas-based National Center for Policy Analysis (NCPA) will unveil the results of a groundbreaking new Report Card on Texas Schools at a media availability Thursday, May 8, 2003 at approximately 10:30 am at the Wyndham Anatole Hotel in Dallas.

The report will show which schools statewide, and in the Dallas-Fort Worth area in particular, are the most effective in teaching sixth grade students the basic skills required by the state. It will also show for the first time how an individual school's effectiveness often varies widely among different types of students. The NCPA will also unveil a new online resource for parents to discover how schools in their area rate.

WHO: National Center For Policy Analysis

WHAT: Report Card On Texas Schools

WHEN: Thursday, May 8, 2003 10:30 Am Cdt

WHERE: Coral Room Wyndham Anatole Hotel Dallas, Texas

The NCPA report uses state-of-the-art techniques for calculating the value added by the school, as opposed to the effects of parents and other factors. The report is based on test scores of sixth grade students on the Texas Assessment of Academic Skills (TAAS), and the ranks are based on changes in the scores of individual students, rather than school averages.

------ The NCPA is an internationally known nonprofit, nonpartisan research institute with offices in Dallas and Washington, D. C. that advocates private sector solutions to public policy problems. We depend on the contributions of individuals, corporations and foundations that share our mission. The NCPA accepts no government grants.