US Graduation: Public High School On Time Graduation Rate Hits All-Time High

More students from the public high schools across the United States are graduating on time, a recent data from the education department shows. Racial and poverty gaps narrow further, and other groups such as English-language learners and persons with disabilities have likewise experienced an increase in their graduation rates.

2014 Graduation Rate Breaks Record

According to the data from the U.S. Department of Education for the school year 2013-2014, there are 82 percent of students who have graduated with a regular diploma and finished the program within the allotted four years, Education Week reported. Measured through the department's Adjusted Cohort Graduation Rate or ACGR, this graduation rate is another record-breaking figure, a jump of 1 percentage point from the previous year, and 3 percentage points from 2011.

The data shows Iowa generated the highest rate at 91 percent, followed by Nebraska with 90 percent, and Wisconsin with 89 percent. The lowest graduation rate was recorded in District of Columbia, which was at 61 percent. The trend was generally on the up in most states in the country, but the biggest gainers are Delaware, which rose by 7 percentage points to 87 percent, and Alabama, which jumped by 6 percentage points to 86 percent from the previous year.

Racial Gaps Narrowed

While historically disadvantaged racial and ethnic groups remained to be the less likely to finish high school on time, the gains in graduation rates among them have been strong in recent years, basically narrowing the racial and ethnic achievement gaps. Asian students had the highest graduation rate at 89 percent, followed by Caucasian students at 87 percent. Meanwhile, 63 percent of persons with disabilities and 63 percent of those with limited English proficiency graduated on time, garnering a 6 percentage points and a 4 percentage points increase since 2011, respectively.