Question:
Are American students performing better in reading now than in the past?
Response:
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) conducts long-term trend assessments, which provide information on changes in the basic achievement of America抯 youth since the early 1970s. They are administered nationally and report student performance at ages 9, 13, and 17 in reading and mathematics. Measuring trends of student achievement or change over time requires the precise replication of past procedures. Therefore, the long-term trend instrument does not evolve based on changes in curricula or in educational practices.
Overall achievement scores on the NAEP long-term trend reading assessment for the country抯 9-, 13-, and 17-year-old students are mixed. The average reading scores at ages 9 and 13 were higher in 2004 than in 1971. The average score for 17-year-olds in 2004 was similar to that in 1971.
For Black 9-, 13-, and 17-year-olds, average reading scores in 2004 were higher than in 1971. At age 9, Black students scored higher on average in 2004 than in any previous administration year. For Blacks ages 13 and 17, scores increased between 1971 and 2004. For White students, the average scores for 9- and 13-year-olds were also higher in 2004 than in 1971. Separate data for Hispanics were not gathered in 1971, but as with the other racial/ethnic groups, the average reading score for Hispanic students at age 9 was higher in 2004 than in any other assessment year. The average score for Hispanic students at age 13 shows an increase between 1975 and 2004. The scores for 17-year-old Hispanic students also increased between 1975 and 2004, but no measurable changes were seen between 1999 and 2004.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (2006). Digest of Education Statistics, 2005 (NCES 2006�0).Average reading scale score, by age, sex, and race/ethnicity: Selected years, 1971 to 2004 | Sex and race/ethnicity | 1971 | 1975 | 1980 | 1984 | 1990 | 1994 | 1999 | 2004 |
9-year-olds1 | ||||||||
Total | 208 | 210 | 215 | 211 | 209 | 211 | 212 | 219 |
Male | 201 | 204 | 210 | 207 | 204 | 207 | 209 | 216 |
Female | 214 | 216 | 220 | 214 | 215 | 215 | 215 | 221 |
Race/ethnicity | ||||||||
White, non-Hispanic | 214 | 217 | 221 | 218 | 217 | 218 | 221 | 226 |
Black, non-Hispanic | 170 | 181 | 189 | 186 | 182 | 185 | 186 | 200 |
Hispanic | (1) | 183 | 190 | 187 | 189 | 186 | 193 | 205 |
13-year-olds | ||||||||
Total | 255 | 256 | 258 | 257 | 257 | 258 | 259 | 259 |
Male | 250 | 250 | 254 | 253 | 251 | 251 | 254 | 254 |
Female | 261 | 262 | 263 | 262 | 263 | 266 | 265 | 264 |
Race/ethnicity | ||||||||
White, non-Hispanic | 261 | 262 | 264 | 263 | 262 | 265 | 267 | 266 |
Black, non-Hispanic | 222 | 226 | 233 | 236 | 241 | 234 | 238 | 244 |
Hispanic | (1) | 232 | 237 | 240 | 238 | 235 | 244 | 242 |
17-year-olds | ||||||||
Total | 285 | 286 | 285 | 289 | 290 | 288 | 288 | 285 |
Male | 279 | 280 | 282 | 284 | 284 | 282 | 281 | 278 |
Female | 291 | 291 | 289 | 294 | 296 | 295 | 295 | 292 |
Race/ethnicity | ||||||||
White, non-Hispanic | 291 | 293 | 293 | 295 | 297 | 296 | 295 | 293 |
Black, non-Hispanic | 239 | 241 | 243 | 264 | 267 | 266 | 264 | 264 |
Hispanic | (1) | 252 | 261 | 268 | 275 | 263 | 271 | 264 |
1 Test scores of Hispanics were not tabulated separately.
NOTE: The NAEP scores have been evaluated at certain performance levels. Scale ranges from 0 to 500. Students at reading score level 150 are able to follow brief written directions and carry out simple, discrete reading tasks. Students at reading score level 200 are able to understand, combine ideas, and make inferences based on short uncomplicated passages about specific or sequentially related information. Students at reading score level 250 are able to search for specific information, interrelate ideas, and make generalizations about literature, science, and social studies materials. Students at reading score level 300 are able to find, understand, summarize, and explain relatively complicated literary and informational material. Includes public and private schools. Excludes persons not enrolled in school and those who were unable to be tested due to limited proficiency in English or due to a disability. Some data have been revised from previously published figures. Standard errors appear in parentheses.
SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics (2006). Digest of Education Statistics, 2005 (NCES 2006�0), Table 108.
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