Top ‘challenging’ high schools listedSix area high schools scored in the top 1 percent of schools ranked nationally for challenging average students, in a survey conducted annually by the Washington Post.
American Indian Public Charter in Oakland ranked 30th nationally. Others in the top 1 percent included Pacific Collegiate in Santa Cruz, Lowell in San Francisco, San Francisco University in San Francisco, Menlo School in Atherton, and Gunn High in Palo Alto.
About 25 greater Bay Area schools ranked in the top 4 percent on the “America’s Most Challenging High Schools” list published by the Post. The survey compiles an index based on the number of college level tests given at a school the previous year, divided by the number of graduates that year.
The index identified 2,335 top public and private schools — those that gave at least as many college-level tests in 2014 as they had graduates. It is intended to highlight schools that excel in persuading average students to take college-level courses and tests. The more Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Advanced International Certificate of Education tests given at a school, in proportion to graduating seniors, the higher the score.
Survey author Jay Mathews of the Washington Post argues that schools that challenge students with college level work, such as the content of AP courses, extend opportunities. He cites research that even low-performing students who score a 2 on the AP test’s 5-point scale do significantly better in college than do similar students who don’t take AP classes.
He began conducting the survey in 1998 for Newsweek magazine.
The Post’s survey also listed an “Equity and Excellence” rating, which shows the percentage of graduating seniors who had at least one score of 3 or above — considered a passing mark on AP tests — on at least one AP test in high school.
The list excluded highly selective schools such as magnet schools or certain charter schools targeting top-performing students. Students at the excluded schools had average scores on the college-entrance SAT or ACT exams that exceeded the highest average scores on those tests in the county.
