Johnny can read ... in some states: assessing the rigor of state assessment systems.Johnny can't read ... in South Carolina South Carolina, state of the SE United States. It is bordered by North Carolina (N), the Atlantic Ocean (SE), and Georgia (SW). Facts and Figures Area, 31,055 sq mi (80,432 sq km). Pop. (2000) 4,012,012, a 15. . But if his folks move to Texas, he'll be reading up a storm. What's going on What's Going On is a record by American soul singer Marvin Gaye. Released on May 21, 1971 (see 1971 in music), What's Going On reflected the beginning of a new trend in soul music. ? It turns out that in complying with the requirements of No Child Left Behind (NCLB NCLB No Child Left Behind (US education initiative) ), some states have decided to be a whole lot more generous than others in determining whether students are proficient pro·fi·cient adj. Having or marked by an advanced degree of competence, as in an art, vocation, profession, or branch of learning. n. An expert; an adept. at math and reading. While NCLB required all states to have accountability systems in place, it did not say specifically how much students should know at the end of 4th or any other grade. Some states have risen to the challenge and set demanding proficiency pro·fi·cien·cy n. pl. pro·fi·cien·cies The state or quality of being proficient; competence. Noun 1. proficiency - the quality of having great facility and competence levels for their students, while others have used lower standards to inflate inflate - deflate reported performance. Not only is the disparity dis·par·i·ty n. pl. dis·par·i·ties 1. The condition or fact of being unequal, as in age, rank, or degree; difference: "narrow the economic disparities among regions and industries" confusing con·fuse v. con·fused, con·fus·ing, con·fus·es v.tr. 1. a. To cause to be unable to think with clarity or act with intelligence or understanding; throw off. b. , but, perversely per·verse adj. 1. Directed away from what is right or good; perverted. 2. Obstinately persisting in an error or fault; wrongly self-willed or stubborn. 3. a. enough, the states with the highest expectations often stand accused of having the most schools said to be in need of improvement--even when their students are doing relatively well. Because of such disparities, the states with the highest standards will be tempted to lower their threshold for determining proficiency, especially when NCLB teeth begin to bite. With the passage of time, states may be tempted to race to the bottom, lowering expectations to ever lower levels so that fewer schools are identified as failing, even when no gains are being made. Because each state selects its own testing system and sets its own passing scores, there is no direct way to compare the proficiency levels established by one state against the others. However, NCLB does require each state to administer the National Assessment of Educational Progress The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also known as "the Nation's Report Card," is the only nationally representative and continuing assessment of what America's students know and can do in various subject areas. (NAEP NAEP National Assessment of Educational Progress NAEP National Association of Environmental Professionals NAEP National Association of Educational Progress NAEP National Agricultural Extension Policy NAEP Native American Employment Program ) to a sample of students in 4th and 8th grade in reading and in mathematics. Comparing the percentage of students achieving proficiency on state tests with the percentage achieving proficiency on the NAEP suggests how demanding each state's standards are. For instance, if only 50 percent of a state's 4th graders are proficient by the nationally determined NAEP standard, but the state claims proficiency for 80 percent, then the state should be given an F for its failure to establish high expectations for its students. But if a state with an equivalent score on the NAEP says only 45 percent are proficient, then it should be given an A for having standards that exceed even those of the NAEP. In practice, only five states--South Carolina, Maine, Missouri, Wyoming, and Massachusetts--deserve the A grade. A lot more deserve Ds and Fs, the worst grades going to Tennessee, Texas, and Oklahoma. To help citizens of every state know whether their state is maintaining high expectations for its students, Education Next plans to issue periodic assessments of how the states compare with one another. Figure 1 shows initial results for the 40 states for which both state and NAEP proficiency levels are currently available. In the future, it will be possible to compare all states with one another. By reporting this straightforward, objective grading system, we hope to help eliminate some of the murkiness murk·y also mirk·y adj. murk·i·er, murk·i·est 1. Dark, dim, or gloomy: a murky dungeon. See Synonyms at dark. 2. a. that still prevails. It would be even better if, as Caroline M. Hoxby recommends elsewhere in this issue (see "Inadequate Yearly Progress," page 46), the federal government issued its own grade for each state. Paul E. Peterson Paul E. Peterson is a leading scholar on education reform.[1] His work has largely focused on the importance of parental choice for improving school outcomes. He is Editor-In-Chief of Education Next and Frederick M. Hess are editors of Education Next. Mark Linnen provided research assistance. RELATED ARTICLE Education Next has graded all states for which comparisons between state proficiency percentages and NAEP proficiency percentages are possible: 4th-grade reading, 4th-grade math, 8th-grade reading, and 8th-grade math. (Ten states and the District of Columbia District of Columbia, federal district (2000 pop. 572,059, a 5.7% decrease in population since the 1990 census), 69 sq mi (179 sq km), on the east bank of the Potomac River, coextensive with the city of Washington, D.C. (the capital of the United States). did not administer the state-level tests and so comparisons were not available*.) Each state's grade is based on the difference between the percentage of a state's students who scored at the proficiency level on the NAEP and the percentage of students who scored proficient on the state's own exam, and this difference is compared with the differences observed in other states. For example, on the 4th-grade reading test, 26 percent of South Carolina's 4th graders scored at or above proficiency on the NAEP reading exam, whereas 31 percent were deemed to be at or above proficiency on the state's own reading exam. The small difference of 5 percent (31 percent minus 26 percent) was two standard deviations In statistics, the average amount a number varies from the average number in a series of numbers. (statistics) standard deviation - (SD) A measure of the range of values in a set of numbers. better than the average difference of 36 percent for all states in 4th-grade reading. Accordingly, South Carolina's standards for this test earned a solid A. The overall grade is based on the simple average of the available grades on the four relevant tests. --Paul Peterson and Frederick Hess * Note: Minnesota, New Hampshire New Hampshire, one of the New England states of the NE United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts (S), Vermont, with the Connecticut R. forming the boundary (W), the Canadian province of Quebec (NW), and Maine and a short strip of the Atlantic Ocean (E). , Iowa, Nebraska, Oregon, Utah, West Virginia West Virginia, E central state of the United States. It is bordered by Pennsylvania and Maryland (N), Virginia (E and S), and Kentucky and, across the Ohio R., Ohio (W). Facts and Figures Area, 24,181 sq mi (62,629 sq km). Pop. , Nevada, Alabama, New Mexico New Mexico, state in the SW United States. At its northwestern corner are the so-called Four Corners, where Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah meet at right angles; New Mexico is also bordered by Oklahoma (NE), Texas (E, S), and Mexico (S). , and Washington, D.C., did not receive grades because they did not administer a 4th- or 8th-grade state test in math or reading.
Strength of State Proficiency Standards, 2003. (Figure 1)
4th-Grade 4th-Grade 8th-Grade 8th-Grade Overall
State Reading Math Reading Math Grade
South Carolina A A A A A
Maine A A A A A
Missouri B+ A A
Wyoming A A A B+ A
Massachusetts A A B+ A
Hawaii B B+ B
California B+ C+ A B
Rhode Island C+ B B+ B- B-
Arizona C B+ B-
Vermont C B B+ C+ B-
Kentucky C+ B B-
Arkansas C C- B B+ C+
Maryland C B- C+
Washington C C+ C+
Ohio C+ C+
New York C+ D B+ C+ C
Florida B- C+ B- D+ C
North Dakota C- C+ C B C
Illinois C C C
Pennsylvania C C C
New Jersey C C C- C C
Delaware C- C C
Michigan C- C C C
Kansas C- C- C-
Indiana C D+ C-
Louisiana C- D+ C D+ C-
Connecticut B- D+ D+ D C-
Montana C- D C D+ C-
South Dakota D- D+ C- C C-
Idaho D+ D D+ C D+
Alaska D+ D+ D+
Virginia C D- D+
Wisconsin D C- D D D
Colorado D D- D+ D
Mississippi F F C- D+ D-
Georgia D- D- F D- D-
North Carolina D D- F F D-
Oklahoma D- F F
Texas F F F D- F
Tennessee F F F
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