Newsweak

Somehow, Newsweek has managed to create a poll for ranking high school academics that's more of a joke than the BCS is in college football (hat tip: Orin Kerr at Volokh)...

Hillsborough High School in Tampa earned a D grade from the state last year. And under federal standards, it fell far short.

But on Monday, Newsweek magazine named it the 10th best high school in the country.

In the country.

Hillsborough was one of 16 Florida high schools to rank in the top 100, including five from the Tampa Bay area.

"We knew we were good," principal William Orr said. "But we didn't know how good."

The Newsweek list is based on a single factor: the number of Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate tests taken by all students at a school, divided by the number of graduating seniors. The students don't have to do well on the tests either. It matters only that they take them.

Test scores? No.

Graduation rates? Nope.

Closing the achievement gap between whites and minorities? Forget it.

Critics say the formula is simplistic. For example, a school's rank can actually improve if it has a high dropout rate.

Well, maybe that's because the dropouts aren't being harmed academically any longer by the school.