An annual report released today by the newspaper Education Week charts an increase in the number of states that define college readiness.

The report, “Quality Counts 2009,” says 20 states now clearly define what skills and knowledge their residents must have to be ready for college, up from 15 in the report issued last year. The number of states aligning their high-school requirements with college expectations rose from six to seven, while the number making college preparation a requirement for earning a high-school diploma remained flat, at three.

The newspaper described Maryland, New Mexico, and West Virginia as having made the most progress in aligning their elementary- and secondary-education systems with early-childhood education, college, and the work force. The report says Idaho, Kansas, Nebraska, and South Dakota made the least progress on that front.

Much of this year’s report focuses on how well schools serve students who are learning English. It found wide variation among the states in the progress such students make in gaining English proficiency. —Peter Schmidt