Looking for the best schools in the country? Look no further than the Garden State.
A new study by online finance resource company Wallet Hub ranks New Jersey as the top state on the 2014 rankings of the Best & Worst School Systems.
New Jersey schools ranked No. 1 for School System Quality and No. 2 for Education Output and Safety. Wallet Hub used 12 key metrics including dropout rates, bullying rates, student-teacher ratio and test scores to determine the list.
New Jersey placed in the Top 5 in math and reading scores, lowest student-teacher ratios and safety.
Wallet Hub CEO Odysseas Papadimitriou explained that New Jersey topped the list thanks to work inside the home and school.
“Both from the household level -- from the family -- in terms of explaining the importance of education, in terms of letting kids know that dropping out should not be an option but also from the quality of education the state provides, it seems there is very good cooperation there,” said Papadimitriou.
Pennsylvania also landed in the Top 10 despite a No. 43 ranking for Education Output and Safety.
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Delaware finished towards the bottom third as the First State came in at No. 34 thanks to a No. 37 ranking in the School System Quality index. The state did however crack the Top 5 in states with low bullying rates.
Washington, D.C. finished dead last in the study.
