ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA — October 1, 2007 — Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) fourth and eighth grade students made advances in reading achievement while regressing slightly in math achievement according to test results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).

The NAEP was administered to DoDEA students from January to early March. Reading scores for DoDEA's fourth and eighth graders were significantly higher than the national average, with eighth graders improving their national rank from second place in 2005 to first in 2007. For 2007, fourth grade students maintained their 2005 third place ranking. DoDEA's domestic and overseas school systems participated in NAEP as a single jurisdiction.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is the only nationally representative and continuing assessment of what America's students know and can do in various subject areas. Assessments are conducted periodically in mathematics, reading, science, writing, the arts, civics, economics, geography, and U.S. history. NAEP does not provide scores for individual students or schools; instead, it offers results regarding subject-matter achievement, instructional experiences, and school environment for populations of students (e.g., fourth-graders) and groups within those populations (e.g., female students, Hispanic students). NAEP results are based on a sample of student populations of interest.

DoDEA Reading Achievement Remains High

Eighth grade students in DoDEA earned the highest reading score in the nation at 273 along with students from Massachusetts and Vermont. DoDEA eighth graders scored 12 points above the national average of 261.

Dr. Shirley Miles, DoDEA's Associate Director for Education and Principal Deputy Director, credits teachers, students and effective curriculum initiatives for the achievements made in reading.

"We're extremely pleased with the results we see in reading," she said. "It is a reflection on how well our students are doing in reading and language arts in general. We have our teachers and students to thank for their hard work and commitment to achieving."

NAEP 2007 Average Reading Score: Grade 8

Rank	State/Jurisdiction	Average Scale Score
1	Massachusetts, DoDEA, Vermont	273
2	Montana	271
3	New Jersey, Maine, New Hampshire, South Dakota	270
4	Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio, Pennsylvania	268
5	Iowa, Kansas, Connecticut, Nebraska, Virginia	267
6	Colorado, Wyoming, Oregon	266
7	Maryland, Washington, Idaho, Delaware	265
8	Wisconsin, Indiana, New York	264
	Nation	261

DoDEA fourth graders ranked third nationally, along with fourth graders from New Hampshire. Students from Massachusetts and New Jersey ranked first and second, respectively.

NAEP 2007 Average Reading Score: Grade 4

Rank	State/Jurisdiction	Average Scale Score
1	Massachusetts	236
2	New Jersey	231
3	DoDEA, New Hampshire	229
4	Vermont	228
5	Connecticut, Virginia, Montana	227
6	Pennsylvania, North Dakota, Ohio, Maine	226
7	Wyoming, Delaware, Minnesota, Iowa, Maryland, Kansas	225
8	Washington, New York, Colorado, Florida	224
	Nation	220

National achievement rankings for the past four years show DoDEA fourth and eighth graders performing at a consistently high rate.

NAEP Reading National Ranks Scores for 2003, 2005, and 2007

All Students	Grade 8			Grade 4
	2003	2005	2007	2003	2005	2007
DoDEA	2nd	2nd	1st	4th	3rd	3rd

Minority Achievement

African American and Hispanic students in DoDEA continued to score the highest in the nation in reading when compared with their stateside public school counterparts at both grade levels. Dr. Janet Rope, DoDEA's Administrator, System Accountability and Research, commented on the achievements of the system's minority students.

"We are enthusiastic that DoDEA has enabled minority students to continue their outstanding performance on the NAEP," she said. "We feel we're on the right track with regard to providing the right curriculum and rigor that helps students realize their full potential."

NAEP 2007 Average Reading Scale Scores African American Students

Grade 8 Students	2003		2005		2007
	Score	Rank	Score	Rank	Score	Rank
DoDEA African American	258	1st	258	1st	259	1st
Nation African American	244		242		244
Nation All Students	261		260		261

At the fourth grade level in 2007, African American students in the DoD schools continue to score at the top of the nation in reading when compared with their stateside counterparts. African American fourth graders achieved a score of 218, which is two points below the national average of 220 for all fourth grade students nationwide.

NAEP 2007 Average Reading Scale Scores African American Students

Grade 4 Students	2003		2005		2007
	Score	Rank	Score	Rank	Score	Rank
DoDEA African American	214	1st	218	1st	218	1st
Nation African American	197		199		203
Nation All Students	216		217		220

Hispanic students in DoDEA continued to lead their counterparts throughout the nation in reading. In addition to achieving the highest scores among their stateside counterparts, DoDEA Hispanic students at fourth and eighth grade continued to surpass the national average score for all students in the nation.

NAEP 2007 Average Reading Scale Scores Hispanic Students

Grade 8 Students	2003		2005		2007
	Score	Rank	Score	Rank	Score	Rank
DoDEA Hispanic	268	1st	268	1st	273	1st
Nation Hispanic	244		245		246
Nation All Students	261		260		261

NAEP 2007 Average Reading Scale Scores Hispanic Students

Grade 4 Students	2003		2005		2007
	Score	Rank	Score	Rank	Score	Rank
DoDEA Hispanic	218	1st	219	2nd	223	1st
Nation Hispanic	199		201		204
Nation All Students	216		217		220

DoDEA Math Achievement Drops Slightly

DoDEA students at both the fourth and eighth grade levels scored higher than the national average in math, but slipped three points each in national rankings at each level.

"Math is an area under review," said Dr. Miles. "We're going to concentrate our efforts in examining our current math practices and implement steps to improve our program. We are committed to developing opportunities to foster growth in student achievement in math," she added.

Eighth grade students in DoDEA earned the ninth highest math score in the nation at 285, five points above the national average of 280.

NAEP 2007 Average Mathematics Score: Grade 8

Rank	State/Jurisdiction	Average Scale Score
1	Massachusetts	298
2	Minnesota, North Dakota	292
3	Vermont	291
4	Kansas	290
5	New Jersey	289
6	South Dakota, Virginia, New Hampshire	288
7	Montana, Wyoming	287
8	Maine, Colorado, Pennsylvania, Texas, Maryland, Wisconsin	286
9	Iowa, DoDEA, Indiana, Washington, Ohio	285
	Nation	280

At the fourth grade level, DoDEA students rank 11th in the nation in math achievement, with a score of 240, one point above the national average.

NAEP 2007 Average Mathematics Score: Grade 4

Rank	State/Jurisdiction	Average Scale Score
1	Massachusetts	252
2	New Jersey, New Hampshire	249
3	Kansas	248
4	Minnesota	247
5	Vermont	246
6	North Dakota, Indiana, Ohio	245
7	Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Wyoming, Montana, Virginia	244
8	Iowa, Connecticut, New York, Washington	243
9	Maine, Texas, Florida, Delaware, North Carolina	242
10	South Dakota, Idaho	241
11	Maryland, Colorado, DoDEA	240
	Nation	239

The mathematics national score ranks show a decline of five places for both DoDEA 8th grade and 4th grade students.

NAEP Mathematics National Ranks Scores for 2003, 2005, and 2007

All Students	Grade 8			Grade 4
	2003	2005	2007	2003	2005	2007
DoDEA	4th	6th	9th	6th	8th	11th

Dr. Rope acknowledged the room for improvement in mathematics and credited students for their achievements in maintaining an edge on their counterparts nationally.

"We will definitely focus on student achievement in mathematics," she said. "The fact that our students as a group scored higher than the national average and the positive trends we continue to see in minority student achievement in math are great strengths and give us a solid foundation to base our efforts on," she added.

Minority Achievement

African American and Hispanic students in DoDEA continued to score at or near the highest in the nation when compared with their stateside counterparts at both grade levels tested in mathematics.

NAEP 2007 Average Mathematics Scale Scores African American Students

Grade 8 Students	2003		2005		2007
	Score	Rank	Score	Rank	Score	Rank
DoDEA African American	270	1st	267	1st	272	1st
Nation African American	252		254		259
Nation All Students	276		278		280

 

NAEP 2007 Average Mathematics Scale Scores African American Students

Grade 4 Students	2003		2005		2007
	Score	Rank	Score	Rank	Score	Rank
DoDEA African American	227	1st	227	3rd	227	4th
Nation African American	216		220		222
Nation All Students	234		237		239

Hispanic eighth graders in DoDEA continued to score higher than the national score for all students. Math scores for Hispanic fourth graders in DoDEA dropped from 2005 to 2007 by two points.

NAEP 2007 Average Mathematics Scale Scores Hispanic Students

Grade 8 Students	2003		2005		2007
	Score	Rank	Score	Rank	Score	Rank
DoDEA Hispanic	278	1st	280	1st	282	1st
Nation Hispanic	258		261		264
Nation All Students	276		278		280

 

NAEP 2007 Average Mathematics Scale Scores Hispanic Students

Grade 4 Students	2003		2005		2007
	Score	Rank	Score	Rank	Score	Rank
DoDEA Hispanic	234	3rd	235	2nd	233	6th
Nation Hispanic	221		225		227
Nation All Students	234		237		239

Additional Information

Detailed statistical information on the 2007 NAEP mathematics assessment and all other NAEP assessments can be found on the web at:
http://www.nationsreportcard.gov

Assessment items and samples of student responses from the 2005 mathematics assessment, along with sample questions from other subject areas, can be found on the web at:
http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/itmrls/