This Is The Worst School District In Pennsylvania

Wilkes-Barre PA

24 July, 2021

1:13 PM

Description

By Samuel Stebbins, 24/7 Wall St. Wilkes-Barre 2021-07-24 Every child is born to a unique set of circumstances. And it is these different social, familial, economic, environmental, and many other factors, that help shape who they become. While these conditions are countless, a handful of factors play an outsized role in a child's development and likelihood for future success — including academic success. Whether or not a child succeeds academically can depend considerably on school quality. A student who falls behind in one school district might have excelled academically in another. By no means limited to the classroom, many of the strongest influences on a child's future are in the home environment, and the resources available or absent there. The Greater Johnstown School District, located in the southwestern section of Pennsylvania, ranks as the worst district in the state. Niche gives the district low marks for academics and college prep. Additionally, according to standardized test scores, 31% of local students are proficient in reading, and only 15% are proficient in math. Many students also face considerable disadvantages outside of the classroom. Children growing up in financially insecure households are less likely to succeed academically, and in the Johnstown district, 42.7% of children live below the poverty line, more than double the 15.9% share of children across the state who do. The four measures used to determine the worst school district in every state are: the child poverty rate, the teacher-to-student ratio, per-pupil spending, and the share of adults with a college education. All data came from the U.S. Census Bureau and the National Center for Education Statistics. This is the worst school district in every state. Can't see the article's infographic? Click here to view the original story.This story was originally published by 24/7 Wall St., a news organization that produces real-time business commentary and data-driven reporting for state and local markets across the country.