Which School District Is Best?

6. Instructional Staff with Advanced Training, measured by the percentage of teachers who have a bachelor's degree plus 45 credit hours, or an advanced degree or a National Board Certification. A is 60 percent and above; B is 59 to 50 percent; C, 49 to 40 percent; D, 39 to 30 percent; and F, 29 percent and below. This is fine, although I wish we had a better measure of teacher quality than degree achievement. National Board Certification, a relatively new program that puts teachers through a battery of exercises and tests, may turn out to be that measure, but relatively few have done it yet.

7. Spending on Instructional Services , measured by the percentage of a district's operating budget spent on instruction. A is 65 percent and above; B is 64 to 63 percent; C, 62 to 61 percent; D, 60 to 59 percent; and F, 58 percent and below. I liked this one until I read of a new study that suggests getting your instructional spending up to 65 percent of your operating budget, which some states have already mandated in law, does not produce the kind of academic gains many had hoped for.

8 . Foreign Language , measured by the percentage of seniors completing at least three years of one foreign language. A is 70 percent and above; B is 69 to 60 percent; C, 59 to 50 percent; D, 49 to 40 percent; and F, 39 percent and below. This is a measure for a global age. I like it.

9. College Place ment , measured by the percentage of graduating seniors going to two-year or four-year colleges, multi-year professional training or the military. The grading system is the same as measure No. 1. Nearly everyone agrees that our children need more than just a high school education. This is a fine measure, although I hope someday we can calculate what percentage of each district's graduates have successfully achieved college degrees and other useful post-graduation goals.

10. Student Involvement , measured by the percentage of seniors with at least two years participation in at least one extracurricular activity or internship. The grading system is the same as measure No 1. I think this is very important, but almost no schools or school districts measure it. This might persuade them to start doing so.

There is more about the report card on the Park City Education Foundation Web site . It will take a long time for such comparisons to be possible on a national scale, but within states, districts could compare themselves to each other with data that should not be too much trouble to acquire.

On most of these measures, affluent districts such as Park City have an advantage. On its own scale, it says it has achieved an overall average of B-plus already.

But some states, such as California, have found interesting ways to compare schools to other schools with similar demographic characteristics. That method might work with this report card.

Tell the Park City folks what you think of it. Copy your e-mail to me at mathewsj@washpost.com and I will do a follow-up column on how this unusual proposal is being received.