1. Georgia has been using its education report card, the College and Career Ready Performance Index, since the 2011-12 school year.

2. It grades schools on a 100-point scale (with up to ten bonus point possible) using a host of measures, with test performance being most important.

3. The federal Every Student Succeeds Act requires states to overhaul their school accountability systems, and Georgia has reworked this report card, making it simpler with 37 "indicators" measured instead of the current 70.

4. Test results are still important, but they count for less in the overall score, due to new measures that award points for enrolling students in things like Advanced Placement courses or for providing art or music classes.

5. Under the current school report card, test achievement is based on the percentage of students who show “proficiency” by passing the test, but under the proposal schools get more points if students get higher scores, showing “content mastery.”

In other education news:

A brief informational look at the HOPE educational programs including the HOPE Scholarship and the Zell Miller Scholarship.

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HBCUs nationally will get $438 million, according to the UNCF, previously known as the United Negro College Fund. Georgia has 10 historically Black colleges and universities. (Daniel Varnado for the AJC)

Credit: Daniel Varnado/For the Atlanta Journal-Constitution

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