Wyoming Students Beat National Averages On Nation’s Report Card

BOSTON- Massachusetts students are showing gains in fourth-grade reading but are slipping in fourth-grade math and eighth-grade reading and math. That’s the major takeaway from national standardized test scores released Wednesday. Massachusetts and Minnesota were the only two states to get statistically higher fourth-grade math scores than Virginia. That’s down one point from 2013.

The difference between the Kentucky and national average scores is modest – 278 compared to 281, respectively. It’s the first year the country has seen overall declines since NAEP began evaluating student performance in 1990.

The Florida scores showed that 42 percent of fourth-graders scored at proficient or advanced levels in math, which is relatively unchanged from 2013 and slightly higher than the national average.

During testing periods from January through March, 5,700 Texas fourth-graders in 480 schools and 5,800 Texas eighth-graders in 380 schools took NAEP math tests. Credit goes to fourth graders.

FOURTH-GRADE MATH: The average score in Maryland dropped from 245 in 2013 to 239 in 2015. Just 31 percent of the state’s fourth-graders were proficient or above in reading in 1992 compared to 43 percent this year.

“When less than half of the schoolchildren in our state are meeting rigorous benchmarks – less than a quarter in low-income areas – it should put our leaders on notice that more work remains if Ohio’s schools are going to prepare students for success after high school”. It was the only state with higher scores. “We should expect scores in this period to bounce around a few, and I think that “implementation dip” is part of what we’re seeing here”, Duncan said in a phone call with reporters.

“We are focused on strengthening the curriculum and training teachers to deliver it. School leaders and the entire Department of Education will be held accountable for improvement”, he said. Results show test scores across the nation, including in Kansas, are lower than in 2013.

There were no significant changes in the achievement gap for reading between white students and their black and Hispanic peers. Gwinnett County Public Schools CEO/Superintendent J. Alvin Wilbanks has said he is in favor of a balanced approach that could only test students once per grade level.

“The results of this year’s National Assessment of Education Progress underscore the importance of clear, consistent learning goals and assessments that raise the bar for all students”.

Florida experienced one of the biggest drops along with Kansas and Pennsylvania, all falling six points from scores two years ago.

That same report shows that Tennessee has seen little to no change in fourth- and eighth-grade math and reading scores over the last two years.