See how Affton and Bayless School districts scored on the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s new system.

Caps fly as the Affton High School class of 2011 graduates. Credit Sarah Worner

School districts in Affton and Shrewsbury got a sneak peek at the new accreditation system that will determine school rankings in a few years.

The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education’s new system—which evaluates academic achievement, college and career readiness, attendance, graduation as well as several other factors—scores schools on a 100-point scale.

Lindbergh School District, along with Kirkwood and Clayton, earned a perfect 100 score. Under the previous scoring system, which ranks schools on a 14-point scale, Lindbergh earned four perfect 14s in the last four years.

Affton School District earned a 96.8 out of 100. Affton also earned perfect 14s over last last four years, but the new 100-point scale is more rigorous and detailed than the current system. (highlight added)

Bayless School District earned a score of 89.3 out of 100. Over the last five years, here is how Bayless has performed according to the current 14-point scale:

The new rankings system makes it more difficult for poorly performing schools to earn accreditation and for high performing schools to earn perfect scores. For example, schools now earn points based on how many of their students pass Advanced Placement exams to earn college credit, not just based on how many AP courses they offer, according to the St. Louis Post Dispatch.

Originally published January 16, 2013 in the Affton Patch (affton.patch.com)

Article by Lindsay Toler