(Radio Iowa) — The Department of Education has released the federal report on how Iowa’s 13-hundred public schools are performing. The Every Student Succeeds Act replaces the federal No Child Left Behind Act and grades schools based on their overall performance and also looks at the performance of subgroups of students — children from low-income homes for example. The performance is measured using student surveys on safety and the learning environment and gauges academic growth as well.

Thirty-four schools are identified for Comprehensive Support and Improvement because their overall scores fall within the lowest five percent of Iowa schools receiving federal funding, or they are high schools with a graduation rate below 67 percent. There are 307 schools identified as Targeted Support and Improvement schools, after one or more of their student subgroups scored the lowest five percent of schools in the state. The schools listed in those two areas receive support from the state and area education agencies and will develop improvement plans. The schools can get rid of the designation after they are no longer performing within the lowest five percent of Iowa schools after three years.

Education Department director Ryan Wise says the new system focuses on helping schools find solutions that work — instead of punishing them when they don’t meet expectations.