13 CT High Schools Ranked Among America's Most Challenging: Report

Many students can skate by in high school with good grades when they choose less challenging courses. But more challenging courses, such as Advanced Placement classes, are what really help teens grow and learn and even earn college credits. With that in mind, the Washington Post recently released its 2017 list of the Most Challenging High Schools in the U.S.

Thirteen Connecticut high schools made the 2017 list, led by the Connecticut IB Academy in East Hartford, the Taft school in Watertown and the Hotchkiss school in Lakeview. Greenwich High School was ranked as the most difficult public high school in the state. (To receive free news alerts from your hometown in Connecticut click here.)

The Washington Post ranks schools through an index formula that’s a simple ratio: the number of Advanced Placement, International Baccalaureate and Advanced International Certificate of Education tests given at a school each year, divided by the number of seniors who graduated that year, according to the Washington Post.

A ratio of 1.000 means the school had as many tests as graduates.

Here is a look at the most challenging schools in the Nutmeg State and their national ranking, according to the Washington Post. You can click here to see all of the schools listed in Connecticut and get more information about individual statistics.

1. Connecticut IB Academy, East Hartford (209)
2. Taft, Watertown (214)
3. Hotchkiss, Lakeview (305)
4. Greenwich High School (357)
5. Weston High School (652)
6. New Canaan High School (688)
7. Marine Science Magnet High School, Groton (701)
8. Coventry High School (842)
9. Choate Rosemary Hall, Wallingford (968)
10. Westhill High School, Stamford (1,133)
11. Amity Regional High School, Woodbridge (1,304)
12. East Lyme High School (1,486)
13. Stamford High School (1,837)

Image via Shutterstock

Kara Seymour, Deb Belt and Amie Rowland contributed to this report