The state’s graduation rate increased less than a percentage point -- from 90.7 percent to 91.3 percent from 2019-20 to 2020-21.
EdSource reports that number excludes schools with Dashboard Alternative School Status, which are county Office of Education-run jail and special education programs, continuation schools and other schools, including charter schools, that serve a high percentage of students at risk of dropping out of school because of credit deficiencies, a high level of transience or various other obstacles in their lives.
The state has determined that schools with this designation are not comparable to other K-12 public and charter schools. If the graduation rate of DASS schools is factored into the total, the statewide graduation rate would be 84.2 percent.
The numbers might seem surprising considering the 2020-21 school year consisted primarily of students attending class at home over Zoom, but state flexibility may have helped keep the graduation rates from falling. State lawmakers allowed parents to request that D's and F's earned that school year be changed to pass or no-pass grades and offered students the option to take a fifth year of high school if needed.
During the pandemic, districts allowed students who could prove hardship to graduate with the state's minimum number of units, although some required more.
Students already struggling academically were more likely to take advantage of the graduation flexibilities offered last year, and college-bound seniors overall continued to excel academically, according to district officials interviewed by EdSource.
California spent $4.6 billion for summer school and extra learning time to confront the academic setbacks most students, particularly low-income students and those with limited internet access, faced during the Covid-19 pandemic.
