Graduation rates up for all demographics
The trend line for Maryland’s statewide graduation rate has been positive. Under a change in federal rules, high school graduation numbers are calculated in what is commonly called the “cohort rate.” The four-year adjusted cohort rate is the number of students who graduate with a regular high school diploma divided by the number of students who form the adjusted cohort for the graduating class. For any given cohort, students who are entering 9th grade for the first time form a cohort that is later “adjusted” by adding students who transfer in during the succeeding years, and subtracting those who transfer out.
The four-year cohort grad rate stood at 80.31 for the class of 2009 – the first year the cohort was calculated in Maryland. In the three years since, graduation rates have improved by more than three percentage points.
Graduation rates for most demographic groups have been improving as well. For example, the graduation rate for African American students has improved nearly 2.5 percentage points since 2010, and the graduation rate for Hispanic students jumped nearly a point between 2011 and 2012. The graduation rate for special education students has improved nearly 3 points since 2010.
As the graduation rate has risen, the dropout rate has declined. It stood at 13.78 percent in 2009 and has dropped more than 3.5 points over the past three years.
Maryland also tallies a five-year cohort graduation rate, since some students require additional years to complete their diplomas before successfully entering the workforce or postsecondary education. The five-year cohort rate the class of 2010 – students who entered school in 2006 – stood at 84.57. The five-year cohort rate for the class of 2011 rose to 85.51.
The new graduation data is now available on Maryland’s Report Card website.
