U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige participated today in the release of new data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) on the performance of the nation's fourth and eighth graders in mathematics and reading. Secretary Paige said that there is good news, and he is encouraged by the results.

"These results show that the education revolution that No Child Left Behind promised has begun," Paige said. "Every child can and will learn—and these scores show that. We should be proud of our nation's teachers who led their students to these higher levels of achievement. They are the best in the world.

"I am particularly pleased to see that the achievement gap is starting to close as African American, Hispanic and low-income students account for some of the most significant improvements," Paige added.

The NAEP, known as the "Nation's Report Card," is the only on-going, nationally representative assessment of what American students know and can do in various academic subject areas. This is the first year that state results are provided for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Additional information about NAEP is available at http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard.

Secretary Paige's prepared remarks follow:

INTRODUCTION

I appreciate the detailed analysis by Val Plisko and Peggy Carr of the National Center for Education Statistics in the department's Institute of Education Sciences. This is good news—positive news of improvement. I am extremely encouraged by these results.

I think our nation's teachers, administrators and students have a lot to be proud of. These results show that the education revolution that No Child Left Behind promised has begun. We are slowly picking up steam and the reforms are starting to work. Every child can learn—and these scores show that.

These gains are not limited to our best students. Instead, we are seeing increases across nearly all subgroups. And in math, the achievement gap separating African American or Hispanic students from their peers is clearly closing. This is an important turning point in American educational history. We have proof that all children can indeed learn—no matter the color of their skin or their ethnic heritage.

People are paying attention to standards-based instruction and assessment. While we still have some work to do, we are definitely on the right path.

Let me highlight a few of the findings just covered and further discuss their significance.

MATHEMATICS

The first area to note is the stellar math results. Here we have very good news. Our future economic growth requires a workforce with the skills necessary to thrive in a high-tech world. Mathematics is the foundation of those skills. That's why I was so pleased to see math scores up markedly. For both fourth and eighth graders, between 2000 and 2003, there is a significant improvement in average scores, and big jumps in the percentage of students scoring at or above both the basic and proficient levels.

Again, I want to point out that these gains extend across nearly all subgroups. Importantly, African American, Hispanic American, and low-income students account for some of the most significant improvements.

As a result, in the most recent period the achievement gap between White and African American students is closing for both fourth and eighth graders. Hispanic fourth graders also are narrowing the achievement gap with their White peers. Although there is no significant change in the achievement gap at the eighth grade level for Hispanic students, improving scores for these students remains a high priority.

The fact that we are reaching our youngest learners with our reforms bodes well for continued improvement as these students advance through their formal schooling. Our challenge now is to build on these improvements. Each and every child must have the opportunity to contribute to the modern economy and compete effectively with their peers around the world.

READING

It is only one year since the last assessment in reading. So, we didn't expect to see much change this year. The good news in the 2003 report is that the gains recorded in the 2002 NAEP results for fourth graders have held steady. The 2003 scores continue to be well above 2000 and 1998 levels. Some of the most impressive gains were registered by African American and Hispanic fourth graders, whose 2003 scores are also significantly above 2000 and 1998 levels.

When looking at the reading scores over time, it is important to note that twice the number of Hispanic students—many of whom do not speak English as a first language—now take NAEP assessments in comparison to a decade ago. Given this increase in the proportion of non-native English speaking students taking the test, the fact that the scores show any improvement is in itself a positive sign. This is historically an underserved population, and now we know that the tools we have under No Child Left Behind can indeed make a difference.

A principal focus of No Child Left Behind is improved reading skills. I fully expect reading scores to continue to increase once our Reading First program has been fully implemented around the country. We must be vigilant. We still have a long way to go. But we are on the right track.

CONCLUSION

Today, our children are showing strong progress in fundamental skills.

These NAEP results represent a turning of the corner. We can build on this success. I am certain we will have further gains in the coming years. I am particularly pleased to see that the achievement gap is starting to close—that is welcome news. But as long as ANY achievement gap remains, we should all be concerned. The President and I want to see the gap eliminated. And that is the focus of No Child Left Behind—eliminating the achievement gap. We can see from these NAEP results that it can slowly be done. Kudos again to everyone—the students and their teachers—for these great marks.

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