This is the second State Report Card and the first State of the Schools Report on Nebraska schools. As you can see, we have good reason to be proud of our students and our schools. A large percentage of our students meet our high standards and score better than average on national assessments. Our dropout rates are low. Our teachers are experienced and highly qualified for their positions.

Nebraska’s students and schools do well because of the strong support from the public, parents and policymakers who make education a top priority. That support pays off.

Our work is not done. We need to ensure that ALL students do well in meeting our standards and in graduating from school.

This year our State Report Card and our State of the Schools Report show reading and writing achievement. In future years, we will report achievement in mathematics, science and social studies/history.

The state data shows how well our students do when they are taught a specific curriculum aligned to the standards. The national data shows how our students compare to their peers across the nation. Each measure is different, but taken together, they portray a picture of how well our students are doing.