Now this is nifty.

ProPublica put together a searchable database that lets you compare the percentage of inexperienced teachers at different schools as well as how many Advanced Placement classes they offer.

The idea is to compare schools in wealthy and poor areas to see if they are offering kids the same opportunities. It’s based on new data from the U.S. Department of Education that is supposed to help it better enforce civil rights in schools and ensure all kids get access to a rigorous education. Education Week reports on some of the federal findings so far:

At schools where the majority of students are African-American, teachers are twice as likely to have one or two years of experience compared to schools within the same district that have majority-white student body. … Less than one-fourth of school districts reported that they ran pre-K programs for children from poor families … Students learning English make up 6 percent of the high school population but are 15 percent of students for whom algebra is the highest-level math course taken by the end of high school.

I’d love your help checking out this information to see how our local high schools are faring. Spot something interesting, worrisome or wonderful? Please let me know!

Please contact Emily Alpert directly at emily.alpert@voiceofsandiego.org or 619.550.5665 and follow her on Twitter: twitter.com/emilyschoolsyou.

Emily Alpert was formerly the education reporter for Voice of San Diego.

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