 Week of August 28, 2000 Editor's Choice Web Pick of the Week |
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SchoolMatch
Addresses “What is
best to teach children first?
Sir, while you are considering which of the two things - - Dr. Samuel Johnson, 1709-1784 Dr. Johnson's wisdom, as usual, still resonates -- particularly now, as
kids in many parts of the world return, however reluctantly, to the
classroom. That brings us to SchoolMatch (http://www.schoolmatch.com/), a
site focused on finding the best schools for your gene pool's junior
partners.
Likewise, linking the brood with the right schools remains
a big part of the equation in recruiting, retaining and transferring
employees. In fact, 71 percent of employees faced with relocating are
reluctant to move because of concerns about educational quality, according
to industry researchers.
An educational research and database service firm
specializing in rating K-12 schools, SchoolMatch squarely addresses those
points. SchoolMatch's puckish slogan, in fact, is, "Because only half the
schools can really be above average." (The slogan is an apparent reference
to one Midwest education official's famous remark, "All of our state
students scored above the state average" - also the likely genesis of the
famous tagline for radio's Lake Woebegone: "where the where men are good
looking, the women strong and all the children above average.")
Online educational data, of course, are already available
from a tsunami of sites. SchoolMatch, though, offers uncommon
informational richness, the result of its reliance on its own educational
audits. In addition, users can personalize search parameters.
Users have to pay to get the maximal value from this site's data.
Nonetheless, users can get a free look at the onsite goodies - as well as
some information they may be able to use immediately.
To get a gander at that free info, click on the
"SchoolMatch Now" icons prominently displayed onsite.
From there, specify the U.S. area in which you're
interested. That takes you to a very general school system profile, which
is also the point at which you set your search parameters in one of four
variables:
Here's how it works: The site divides those four variables into five
quintiles "based upon average values in that school district."
We decided during our test drive to shoot the moon, going
with the online equivalent of the champagne brunch. We specified the 81-99
percent range for all four variables in the Atlanta metro, this reviewer's
home base.
Of the metro's 35 school systems, eight matched the 81-99
percent range in area property values. Once we added the 81-99 percent
criterion for college scholarship exam scores, the list thinned down to
five.
Each search result also includes links to each system
that's listed. And each system includes clickoffs providing brief profiles
of each individual school, including address and phone number, enrollment,
and total fulltime teachers.
You'll need cash to get more detailed info. The listed
Atlanta-area prices were US$9.95 per individual school report or $19.95
for a system report. Note, however, that prices varied in other metros we
checked.
To get an idea of what you can buy, click on "Sample
Snapshot" or "Sample Report Card." Despite the database's massive amount
of information, the reports are boiled down into very readable,
user-friendly formats.
Apparently, a lot of major companies agree. "Currently,
370 of the Fortune 500 companies provide this service as a part of their
relocation package," according to the site.
If those numbers are correct, you can see what's driving them. The
folks behind this site clearly live, breathe and eat education. And
they're way too smart to reduce tough questions to numbers alone.
In addition, despite the reams of online data, the site is
whippet quick.
You'll also find a wealth of other free information here.
Yes, some of it blows the site's own horn (not that there's anything wrong
with that). But some of the free stuff is valuable to anyone who's trying
to get a better handle on the elusive concept of educational quality.
Our test drive, however, did surface one recurring result
that reflects U.S. education's heavy (and unfortunate) reliance on
local-area property taxes: All the schools meeting the highest criteria
were located in well-heeled areas.
Educational quality, though, isn't always umbilically
linked to hard cash, the site emphasizes. That fact is underscored in a
soon-to-be-released study of 15,892 U.S. school districts conducted by
SchoolMatch in conjunction with "Offspring" (http://www.offspring.com/, a new
parenting magazine that's part of "The Wall Street Journal" stable).
The study's verdict: "Wealthy communities don't have a
lock on good schools."
Formal education, of course, can only do so much.
As B. F. Skinner put it, "Education is what survives when
what has been learned has been forgotten."
Typically, Mark Twain tackled that issue with considerably
more waggishness: "I never let schooling interfere with my education."
Concerns about school quality, though, are an eternal part
of parenting - and of business. SchoolMatch provides a solid online tool
that addresses those concerns.
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