Summary:
The city of JBER, Alaska is home to three elementary schools that are part of the Anchorage School District, which is ranked 14th out of 24 districts in the state and has a 3-star rating from SchoolDigger. The data reveals that Aurora Elementary is the standout school in the area, consistently ranking among the top 30 elementary schools in Alaska and earning a 4-star rating from SchoolDigger. In contrast, Ursa Minor Elementary is the weakest performer, with a lower statewide ranking and only a 2-star rating, while Orion Elementary School falls somewhere in the middle with a 3-star rating.
The data analysis reveals that Aurora Elementary's test scores significantly outperform the district and state averages across multiple subjects and grade levels, particularly in 5th grade where proficiency rates are over 20 percentage points higher. This high academic performance is accompanied by the highest per-student spending among the three schools, at $15,919 per student. Ursa Minor Elementary, on the other hand, has the lowest per-student spending at $12,371 and lags behind the district and state in test scores, especially in mathematics.
The differences in student demographics may also play a role, as the schools with higher percentages of free/reduced lunch recipients (Ursa Minor and Orion) tend to have lower academic performance compared to Aurora Elementary, which has a lower percentage of free/reduced lunch recipients. These findings suggest that socioeconomic factors and resource allocation may be contributing to the disparities in student achievement across the schools in the JBER area.
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