Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Below are the most frequently asked questions about ConnCAN’s School Report Card project. If your question is not answered below, please send us an email at info@conncan.org.

Where does the information used in the report cards come from?

The descriptive information provided on the schools (district, level, type, size, grades, demographics, per pupil spending, and contact information) was obtained from the Connecticut State Department of Education’s Strategic School Profiles database.

The student performance data are based on the most recent results from Connecticut’s two statewide assessment tests: the 2008 Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) and the 2008 Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT).

How often is it updated?

The inaugural version of School Report Cards project launched in July 2006. We launched a second version with 2006 data in September 2006, a third version with 2007 data in October 2007, and a fourth with 2008 data in September 2008. We plan to continue updating the report cards annually.

Why do you use standardized test data to grade the schools?

While results from Connecticut’s standardized tests, the CMT and CAPT, cannot provide a complete assessment of our public schools, they do offer parents a unique window into how well their schools are meeting the needs of all their students. The key advantage of standardized test data is that it is “standardized” – meaning that it provides a common yardstick for assessing the relative performance of each school in the state in terms of the key skills and knowledge students are expected to have at their grade level.

What is “goal range”?

While there is no passing grade on the CMT or the CAPT, the Connecticut State Department of Education does set state goals for each subject area in each grade tested. The department defines these state goals as the knowledge, skills and critical thinking abilities that are “reasonable to expect of students” within their grade level.

While the department also reports the percentage of students scoring at a level above Goal, using the term Advanced, and below, using the terms Proficient, Basic, and Below Basic, ConnCAN uses the Goal standard to set the bar for rating schools at the level of performance “reasonable to expect of students” within their grade level.

How are the different sections of the report card calculated?

Schools are rated in the report cards based on the average percentage of students within goal range in the three content areas on the CMT or the four content areas on the CAPT (with scores ranging from 0 to 100 points). The overall average is presented in the “Students within Goal Range” section, while the results for each subject area are presented in the “Details” section.

This score is also calculated for Whites, African Americans, Hispanics, low-income and non-low income student subgroups. The average for African Americans, Hispanics and low-income students is presented in the “Subgroups within Goal Range” section and the average difference between the percentage of low-income and non-low income students, African American and white students, and Hispanic and white students within goal range in the “Gap between Subgroups” section.

Finally, to shed light on the relative effectiveness of schools in increasing the percentage of students within goal range during their time in the school, the change in the average percentage of a student cohort within goal range is presented in the “Performance Gains” section. This section only appears in the report cards for elementary and middle schools. It is important to note that the ability of this indicator to represent an individual school’s impact on the change in student achievement is determined in part by the stability of the student body. Changes in the composition of the student body, either through incoming or outgoing students, will lessen the efficacy of this measure.

Why do you assign grades to schools in the report cards and how are they determined? Why are there only grades for elementary and middle schools?

While the scores across the four major sections of the report card are presented with district and state averages and district ranks to provide a comparison point, it is also helpful for parents to have an absolute benchmark for how their child’s school is performing. To meet this need, each school is also assigned a letter grade from A to F in each section for which data is available. 

For the complete grading tables for these sections, see the methodology section.

Only elementary and middle schools receive letter grades since they are the only set of schools where all four performance indicators can be calculated for the majority of schools.

Why do you require people to sign up as a ConnCAN member before viewing the report cards?

As an organization focused on improving public education in Connecticut, we believe that we can most effectively serve our mission of promoting “Great Schools for All” by encouraging as many people as possible in our state to get involved. The information you provide when signing up as a member of ConnCAN helps us better tailor our projects and activities to the needs of our members. We also hope that as members you will take advantage of the access you gain to the ConnCAN Action Center to become involved in our campaign to close Connecticut’s achievement gap.

What should I do if I see an incorrect piece of information on a school or district?

We are always working to improve the website and correct any errors that may exist in the school report cards. If you see an incorrect piece of information, please send us an email at info@conncan.org.

Why do some school report cards not have information on Performance Gains, Subgroups within Goal Range, and Gaps between Subgroups?

The Performance Gains section can be calculated for 96 percent of elementary and middle schools in the School Report Cards database that have publicly available CMT data. It was not possible to calculate a similar measure for Connecticut’s high schools because only one grade is tested in high school (grade 10).

In addition, since CMT and CAPT data are not made public for schools with less than 20 students per subgroup, low-income scores can only be calculated for 47 percent of Connecticut’s public schools, African American scores can only be calculated for 23 percent of schools, and Hispanic scores can only be calculated for 25 percent of schools. In addition, only 30 percent of schools have enough students in these subgroups to calculate at least one “Gap between Subgroups” score. 

Finally, to shed light on the relative effectiveness of schools in increasing the percentage of students within goal range during their time in the school, the change in the average percentage of a student cohort within goal range is calculated. The performance gains measure could be calculated for 96 percent of schools in the 2008 database.

Why is there no report card on my child’s school?

The School Report Cards project covers only public elementary, middle and high schools in Connecticut. Report cards are not available for parochial schools or private schools in Connecticut and any schools outside of the state.

Of Connecticut’s 1,093 elementary, middle and high schools, 1,035 (or 95 percent) are covered by the report card project. It was not possible to produce report cards for the remaining schools because public CMT or CAPT data were not made available for these schools by the State Department of Education, usually because there were fewer than 20 students in the grade tested.

Most schools are listed under the town or city where they are located (including public charter schools and interdistrict magnet schools). There are three additional groupings where schools may be contained: Vocational-Technical Schools, Regional School Districts, and Independent Schools (Norwich Free Academy, The Gilbert School and Woodstock Academy).

If you believe a Connecticut public school does have publicly available CMT or CAPT data but is not listed on the ConnCAN website, please send us an email at info@conncan.org.

Is ConnCAN or the School Report Card project affiliated with the Connecticut State Department of Education?

No. ConnCAN is an independent, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization and neither the organization nor its projects are affiliated with the Connecticut State Department of Education. To learn more about ConnCAN, see About Us.

How do I contact a school to talk about their grades on your report card?

Where available, we have included a school’s phone number and website in the top right-hand corner of its report card.

How do I contact my local media or local elected officials to share my views on how schools are performing in Connecticut?

Once you are signed in as a ConnCAN member, you can access online tools to help you find and contact your local media and local elected officials by visiting the Action Center section of the website.

Do I need to have cookies turned on to use your site?

Yes. In order to view the school report cards you must first sign-in as a ConnCAN member, which requires that your browser is set to accept cookies. The information we store in the cookie cannot be read by any website other than www.conncan.org. For more information on our privacy policy, visit the Information page on the ConnCAN website. 

Why am I having problems signing into your website, printing report cards or emailing report cards?

The ConnCAN website is designed to run on the most recent versions of Internet Explorer. If you are using the most recent version of this browser and are still experiencing problems please send an email detailing your operating system, browser, and the specific problem you are having to info@conncan.org.

Still Have Questions?

Send us an email with “question” in the subject line to info@conncan.org.