US minorities closing gaps in learning but nation's progress small in math & reading By Ben Feller Washington - American black and Hispanic students are narrowing the achievement gap with white students in reading and math, but overall the nation's progress is small or slipping. The 2005 scores for grades four and eight come from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, the most respected measure of how pupils perform nationwide. The results are noted in both academic and political circles because they cover math and reading, the two building-block subjects that schools are scrambling to improve. Across the country, math scores were up in grades four and eight. In reading, fourth-graders virtually held steady and eighth-graders declined. Generally, children in the United States begin first grade at age 6. The strongest results came in math, where black and Hispanic students in both grades posted their highest scores since testing began in the early 1990s. In reading and math, blacks and Hispanics either shrank their test-score gap with whites or lost no ground. That's significant because schools face unprecedented pressure to improve achievement by minorities under President George W. Bush's ’No Child Left Behind" law. Black and Hispanic students lag behind whites in access to quality teaching, college degrees and other measures of success. In perspective, minorities still fall behind by sizable margins. Based on average scores in math, for example, many black fourth-graders lack the skills to classify numbers as even or add or to determine the next number in a given pattern. ’The absence of really bad news isn't the same as good news," said Ross Wiener, policy director for The Education Trust, which advocates for poor and minority students. ’If you're concerned about education and closing achievement gaps, there's simply not enough good news." The goal of the test is for students to show they can handle challenging subject matter and apply it to real-life situations, a skill level known as proficient. Less than four in 10 students in both grades have reached at least that level in either math or reading. In reading, almost no state improved its performance significantly in either grade, and some states saw declines. In math, several states got better, especially at fourth grade. Of fourth-graders, 36 percent were at least proficient in math, up 32 percent from 2003. Among eighth-graders, 30 percent were proficient or better, up from 29 percent. In reading, the news was less promising, if not deflating. Fourth-graders essentially held steady, as 31 percent scored at or above proficient, the same as last time. Their average test scores did increase by one point. Meanwhile, eighth-graders got a little worse in reading as 31 percent showed mastery over challenging work, a one-point drop from 2003. Much higher numbers of students in both subjects showed at least basic skills.

We hope you found this article helpful.

Search for more education articles related to:
"US minorities closing gaps in learning but nation's progress small in math & reading"

Bookmark this Page!