National report says minority, low-income students are reducing ‘achievement gaps’
April 2, 2009
COLUMBIA, SC – April 2, 2009 – South Carolina’s minority and lower-income students have raised their scores and reduced achievement gaps on standardized reading and math tests, according to a national report released today by the Education Trust.
The report, “Education Watch,” tracks results on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as The Nation’s Report Card – the country’s only ongoing survey of what students know and can do in core academic subjects. The federal No Child Left Behind Act requires states to participate in fourth- and eighth-grade NAEP math and reading tests.
“Education Watch” says that achievement gaps in South Carolina are smaller than the national average and have shrunk as NAEP scores for the state’s African-American, Hispanic and low-income students have slowly increased over the last four to eight years.
According to the report, eighth-grade math performance by the state’s African-American students ranked ninth in the country when compared to similar students in other states and the District of Columbia. Fourth-grade reading performance by African-American students in South Carolina ranked 33rd.
The same trend was observed in matching the state’s Hispanic students’ scores with similar demographic groups. Eighth-grade math scores for South Carolina’s Hispanic school population ranked No. 8 nationally, while fourth-grade reading performance was 28th in the national comparison.
South Carolina eighth-graders who qualified for reduced-price or free school food programs because of family income ranked 17th nationally based on their 2007 NAEP math scores. Lower-income students in the fourth grade ranked 43rd in reading performance.
“Education Watch reminds us that South Carolina is a lot like the rest of the nation when it comes to how well our schools serve different groups of students,” said State Superintendent of Education Jim Rex. “Students and teachers are working hard and making progress. But achievement gaps persist, and we need to improve faster if we’re going to be competitive.”
The Education Trust is a nonpartisan advocacy group that produces research and other publications designed to enhance K-12 educational opportunities in the United States, particularly for low-income and minority students.
NAEP gains by South Carolina’s African-American students have outpaced those recorded by the state’s white students.
For instance, the average fourth-grading reading score for African-American students went up by seven points from 1998 to 2007, more than doubling the three-point increase seen by white students during that time. In eighth-grade mathematics, African-American students added 18 points to their average score from 2000 to 2007, while the average score for white students was 16 points higher in the same time period.
South Carolina achievement gaps smaller than the national average
These gains mean the difference in achievement between the Palmetto State’s white students and African-American students is now smaller than the gap nationwide. The state’s gap in 2007 fourth-grade NAEP reading was 25 points, compared to a 27-point gap nationally. The state’s gap in 2007 grade eight NAEP math was 28 points, compared to almost 32 points nationally.
In 2007, Hispanic students in South Carolina had eighth-grade NAEP math scores that were 21 points lower than those of white students, significantly better than the nation’s average achievement gap of 26.5 points. Grade four NAEP reading scores for Hispanic students in South Carolina were 19 points lower than those of white students, nearly seven points better than the nation’s average achievement gap of 25.8 points.
South Carolina’s achievement gap between lower-income students and those from higher-income families also beat the national figure for eighth-graders. The state gap was 25 points for 2007 NAEP grade eight math scores, compared to 26.3 points nationally. The difference in achievement between lower- and higher-income students in 2007 grade four NAEP reading was 27 points for both South Carolina and the rest of the nation.
