Examining Massachusetts High School Education Performance: A Tableau-Based Deep Dive Into State-Level Insights

Have you ever wondered about the challenges that the Secretary of Education has to face?

In order to deliver successful college admission rates, the U.S. Department of Education must pay attention to class sizes, SAT scores and drop out rates among each state’s high school. Now that is a HUGE ask!

To explore the above question, I used a data visualization tool, Tableau , to build a dashboard fueled by 2017 data of public schools in Massachusetts intended for theoretical use by Patrick Tutwiler, PhD , Massachusetts Secretary of Education.

By manipulating the data into charts, this enabled me to identify what the average SAT score was by high school, what schools needed help with their SAT scores, as well as surfaced patterns between class size and the number of students attending college. I have summarized my findings in an interactive dashboard, featuring BANs, a scatter plot and a couple horizontal bar charts using various plays on color saturation. Please feel free to investigate the dashboard by clicking on the image below!

THE PROJECT

In this project, my primary emphasis will be on delivering actionable insights that can help guide a campaign for the Massachusetts Department of Education to improve Math SAT scores and drop out rates among Massachusetts public high schools. I will be using the Massachusetts Public Schools dataset sourced from Kaggle (2017). This dataset encompasses various data points such as student demographics, K-12 school performance, graduation rates, and college attendance statistics from the year 2017.

Questions that I will aim to answer:

• How does class size affect rates of college attendance?
• How does a school being economically disadvantaged affect college attendance?
• How does a school being economically disadvantaged affect graduation rates?
• How much do SAT scores on average vary from school to school?
• What schools are excelling at keeping a low drop out rate?
• What kind of trends can be observed in primary education?

THE INSIGHTS

The first thing that caught my eye was a surprising connection between class size and college attendance rates. I hypothesized that smaller classes would lead to better results, so this finding was unexpected. However, when we used a 4th degree polynomial regression line on the scatter plot, the relationship became evident. What's interesting is that this pattern continues to hold true until class sizes reach approximately 35 students. While further investigation is required, given the limited data points for class sizes exceeding 25, it's clear that classrooms with more than 15 students tend to perform noticeably better than smaller ones.

The second discovery pertained to the influence of economic hardship on college enrollment. This was less unexpected, yet still a highly notable trend. Among economically disadvantaged students, the percentage of those attending college exhibited substantial variation with figures as low as 10 percent and as high as 95 percent. It's worth noting that most of the exceptional cases of high college attendance among economically disadvantaged students were associated with charter schools, a finding made possible through Tableau's feature that enabled a more detailed examination of individual data points.

A key trend visible in the data shows the variation in average Math SAT scores among all Massachusetts high schools. Despite Massachusetts being renowned for its high-quality public education, there are many high schools that need work in bringing their average Math SAT scores up. By interacting with the bar graph on the Tableau dashboard, you’ll be able to easily identify which schools are not meeting the University of Massachusetts passing Math SAT score of 570. This clear insight shines a light on all the schools that could benefit from a campaign to improve one of the nation’s leading public school systems.

Let's shift our attention to a specific metric that highlights an opportunity for improvement in Massachusetts public schools – dropout rate. The top 10 high schools with the lowest percentage dropout rate serve as successful examples of high school staff teaching students impactful learning habits to keep them interested and engaged. The visual representations below helps give the viewer an idea of what the common dropout rate is among the top 10 ranking schools. When you interact with these schools on the Tableau dashboard, you can observe whether the school is a public or a charter school. This provides valuable insight into which school format is delivering low dropout rates and can reaffirm that a state’s curriculum versus an autonomous curriculum is working.

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• Schools that have nearly 20 percent or under of economically disadvantaged students tend to deliver better performing education numbers, including graduation rates, college attendance, and higher than average Math SAT scores
• Boston Latin School , Whittier Regional Vocational Technical High School and North Andover High School had the lowest dropout rate performances in Massachusetts during 2017. More investigation is needed to better understand the strategies their staff were using to keep students engaged. In theory, these strategies could be campaigned for use at schools that are struggling with high dropout rates
• Schools that have larger class sizes generally show higher graduation and college attendance rates

RECOMMENDATIONS

Firstly, it is imperative to improve mathematics proficiency in high schools, especially in less affluent neighborhoods. This goes beyond just achieving competence in a subject; it involves providing students with the essential tools for a promising future. Proficient math skills not only open doors to rewarding careers in fields such as technology and engineering but also cultivate critical problem-solving abilities that are applicable in everyday life. Consequently, when children from less privileged backgrounds excel academically and secure promising jobs, they gain the opportunity to elevate their social and economic status beyond that of their parents. Therefore, prioritizing mathematics education in high schools isn't merely a matter of statistics; it represents a strategic step toward building a brighter future for these young individuals.

Secondly, the state should prioritize expanding math tutoring services at a free or discounted rate for economically disadvantaged students. The data shows that schools with economically disadvantaged student rates of more than 20 percent tend to have underperforming Math SAT scores. By increasing the availability and tutoring opportunities, Massachusetts can provide these students with enhanced educational options, creating a pathway to academic success and a multitude of future possibilities.

Lastly, Massachusetts should strike a careful balance when considering class sizes. While data shows that larger classes can be associated with higher graduation rates and increased college attendance, the state should also focus on delivering personalized attention and tailored support within these larger classrooms to improve dropout rates. Achieving this equilibrium may involve implementing targeted strategies like small-group instruction or personalized tutoring. A further investigation into the top 10 schools with the lowest dropout rates can help confirm what strategies in-place are currently working. By ensuring that students, especially those from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, receive affordable access to necessary academic assistance, Massachusetts can enhance their educational outcomes, ultimately enabling them to reach their full academic potential.

Thank you for taking the time to listen and digest my insights for this project! I am very open to receiving feedback so please drop any comments in the section below ??