Goals
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Indicator Measures
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How are we doing?
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| 4.1 Retaining the Region’s Competitive Edge in Education |
4.1.1 Educational attainment rates, Boston and Metro Boston versus comparable regions |
As of 2005, 41% of adults in the City of Boston over the age of 25 held Bachelor’s degrees, up from 38% in 2000. However, Boston’s national ranking declined from 3rd in 2000 to 6th in 2005, surpassed by cities such as Raleigh (41.7%), Durham (42.3%), and San Jose (43.8%). |
| 4.2 Higher Education and Advancement Opportunities |
4.2.1 Participation in Massachusetts' public higher education institutions by race and ethnicity |
Between 2000 and 2005, statewide enrollment at public colleges and universities increased nearly 5%—or by about 11,000 students. While enrollment in the university system remained virtually unchanged, enrollment at state colleges increased by about 8% (5,244) and enrollment at community colleges by nearly 6% (6,311). |
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4.2.2 Boston Public School graduates enrolled in college or skills training |
Seventy-six percent of BPS graduates of the class of 2004—the most recent class for which data are available—were enrolled in college or training a year after graduation, an increase of 17% from 1998. |
| 4.3 Education for Economic Advancement |
4.3.1 Adult education and English language slots vs. length of time on waiting list
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In 2006 in Massachusetts, 5,667 were on the waiting list for Adult Basic Education (ABE) and 16,570 were on the waiting list for English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) training. |
| 4.4 School Readiness and Ready Schools |
4.4.1 Enrollment in early, accredited childhood education and full day kindergarten, Boston, neighborhood and Massachusetts |
Boston’s waiting list for subsidized child care declined 38% between 2003 and 2005, Massachusetts' declied 22%. Boston’s waiting list as a percentage of the statewide waiting list declined from 23% to 18%. Throughout the same time period, the total city-wide child care capacity remained the same at 18,876 slots |
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4.4.2 Students who qualify for free or reduced price lunch, Boston and Metro Boston |
More than 74% of Boston public school students qualified for the city’s free or reduced price lunch program in 2004-2005, indicating a high rate of poverty among the families of Boston’s schoolchildren. |
| 4.5 High Academic Achievement |
Third graders reading at 3rd grade reading level by race/ethnicity and income, Boston and Massachusetts |
Between 2004 and 2006 the percentage Boston of 3rd graders receiving “Proficient” and “Advanced” MCAS language arts test scores declined from 35% to 30%. Statewide 58% of 3rd graders received MCAS scores in 2006 that were “Proficient” or Advanced, down from 63% in 2004. |
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4.5.2 MCAS scores of 10th graders by race/ethnicity and income, Boston and Massachusetts |
Between 2003 and 2006, Boston’s 10th graders improved at rates faster than their statewide counterparts, and all students made advances in English Language Arts and Mathematics scores. However, Boston and Massachusetts face similar racial/ethnic disparities in 10th grade MCAS English and Math test scores, with white and Asian students achieving higher scores than their black and Latino counterparts. |
| 4.6 School Choice |
4.6.1 Enrollment in public, private, parochial and charter schools, Boston |
As of 2006, about 24%—down from 27% in 2004—of the estimated 80,000 school-age children in Boston did not attend Boston Public Schools. The largest alternative is private and parochial schools with some 13,000 students, then charter schools. |
| 4.7 Parental and Community Involvement |
4.7.1 Parental involvement, Boston Public Schools |
The Boston Parent Organizing Network is a coalition of 36 member organizations that supports parents as advocates, connects parents and communities to decision-making processes in the BPS, and fosters connections through which parent groups can exchange ideas, information, and strategies |
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4.7.2 Corporate involvement and partnerships, Boston Public Schools |
In the 2005-2006 school year, Boston Partners in Education (BPE) had 733 corporate employee volunteers, a sizeable increase from 519 corporate volunteers in 2002. |
| 4.8 High Quality Teaching |
4.8.1 Ratio of students to teachers in the regular education program, Boston Public Schools |
In the 2005-2006 school year the ratio of students to teachers remained the same as in 2004-2005 with 25 students per teacher in K-8 and 31 in high school. |
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4.8.2 Teachers who have advanced degrees in the subjects they teach, Massachusetts |
No recent data are available for the state or for Boston. However, in 2001, Massachusetts was identified by Education Week as one of 24 states with a policy that links teacher certification with student content standards. The publication gave the state an overall grade of B. |
| 4.9 High Quality School Culture and Environment |
4.9.1 Schools with up-to-date technology and libraries, gyms, labs and renovated schoolyards, Boston neighborhood |
In 2006 there were 56 schoolyards city-wide—up from 47 in 2003—and in 2002 75 elementary schools were equipped with Libraries, Labs & Gyms. |
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4.9.2 Ratio of students to guidance counselors, Boston |
In 2003—the most recent available data—Boston had 94 guidance counselors, a ratio of 1 counselor to every 664 students. |
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4.9.3 Attendance, dropout and expulsion rates by level, Boston and Massachusetts |
In 2004-2005 (most recent available data) the BPS total dropout rate was 7.7%, down from a high of 9.4% in 1999-2000. Across grade levels, Boston’s 9th, 10th, and 11th graders are continuing to stay in school at higher rates than in previous years, however, the 12th grade dropout rate in 04-05 was 9.2%. |
| 4.10 Out-of-School Opportunities |
4.10.1 Children and youth participation in after-school prgrams, Boston neighborhood vs. comparable cities |
As of 2006, 49.2% of Boston’s school-age children participated in after-school programs, down from 51% in 2003 |
| 4.11 Public Support for Education |
4.11.1 Per student spending on early childhood education, K-12 and public higher education, Boston and Massachusetts |
In fiscal year 2005, Boston’s overall K-12 per student spending $12,272—a 36% increase since fiscal year 1999. Massachusetts’ overall spending per student also increased to $9,096 in FY05—a 20% increase over FY99. |