SCORES AND TRENDS
SCORES AND TRENDSSTUDENT ACHIEVEMENT TRENDS: 2001-2006
Percent of Students at or above Achievement Level III in Grades 3 through 8
For purposes of this summary, the term "proficient" will be used to indicate scores at or above Achievement Level III. All scores are composites of reading and/or mathematics for grades 3 through 8 combined.
STATEWIDE TRENDS
When the entire student population is considered, proficiency increased each successive year from 2001 to 2005 on the Reading and/or Mathematics End-of-Grade (EOG) Tests. Students across the State have seen as much as an 8 percentage point increase in performance over five years. In 2006, percent proficiency continued to rise slightly for the reading test scores. However, a substantial decline in student proficiency occurred on the State’s 2006 mathematics assessment resulting in a decline for the combined reading and mathematics composite scores. (A new Mathematics EOG Test was instituted in the 2005-06 school year. Therefore, performance data in mathematics for 2006 is not directly comparable to performance data before this year.)
The percent of all students proficient across grades 3 through 8 in 2001 and 2005, the amount of gain from 2001 to 2005, as well as percent of student proficiency in 2006 are provided in Table 1 below.
Table 1: Percent Proficient in Reading and/or Mathematics for 2001, 2005 and 2006: Amount of Gain from 2001 to 2005
| End-of-Grade Composite Grades 3 through 8 |
PERCENT PROFICIENT 2001 | PERCENT PROFICIENT 2005 | AMOUNT of GAIN from 2001-2005 (percentage points) | PERCENT PROFICIENT 2006 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading and Mathematics | 71.7 | 79.7 | 8.0 | 61.2 |
| Reading | 77.1 | 84.6 | 7.5 | 84.9 |
| Mathematics | 81.8 | 87.3 | 5.5 | 63.4 |
ETHNIC GROUP TRENDS
Overall Student Performance: 2001-2005
While all ethnic groups have gained from 2001 to 2005 on the Reading and/or Mathematics EOG Tests, performance varies widely across groups. The greatest gains (from highest to lowest) in student proficiency have been made by the following ethnic groups: Black, American Indians and Hispanic. The White student subgroup has seen the least amount of gains over the last five years but are still following an upward trend in performance. Therefore, proficiency performance for all student subgroups has increased from 2001 to 2005.
From 2001 to 2005 the pattern of gains relative to the statewide average gain is similar for each composite test score (Reading and/or Mathematics EOG Tests):
- Black, American Indian and Hispanic student gains exceeded the State average gain.
- White student gains were below the State average gain.
- Asian student gains were approximately the same as the State average gain.
- Multi-Racial student gains were approximately the same as the state average gains on the mathematics test but slightly less than the statewide gain on the reading test and on the combined reading and mathematics tests.
Examination of Mathematics and Combined Reading and Mathematics Test Scores: 2006
For 2006, all ethnicities experienced a drop in proficiency on the mathematics assessment resulting in a decline for the combined reading and mathematics composite scores. The largest decreases in achievement were experienced by American Indian, Black, Hispanic, and Multi-Racial students. Only White and Asian students experienced a decrease less than the statewide average decrease for both mathematics and the combined reading and mathematics test scores. (See Table 2 for mathematics data and Table 3 for combined reading and mathematics data.)
The gap in achievement among the ethnic subgroups on the Mathematics EOG Test and therefore on the combined reading and mathematics tests follows the same trends as the performance data. That is, from 2001 to 2005, all subgroups saw a reduction in the achievement gap compared to white students. However, as the performance in mathematics dropped for all subgroups in 2006, there was also a widening in the achievement gap for all subgroups except for the Asian student subgroup. The achievement gap in 2006 was greater for all subgroups than it was in 2001 except for the Asian student subgroup. In 2006, Black and American Indian student subgroups experienced the greatest expansion in the achievement gap. For these subgroups, their gap increased over 11 percentage points a piece from 2005 to 2006. (See Table 2 for mathematics data and Table 3 for combined reading and mathematics data.)
Table 2: Percent Proficient and Achievement Gap in Mathematics by Ethnicity: 2001-2006
| STUDENT SUBGROUP | MATHEMATICS End-of-Grade
Composite Grades 3 through 8 |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PERCENT PROFICIENT | ACHIEVEMENT GAP (Subgroups compared to White Students) | |||||
| 2001 | 2005 | 2006 | 2001 | 2005 | 2006 | |
| State | 81.8 | 87.3 | 63.4 | 7.6 | 5.7 | 11.8 |
| American Indian | 74.4 | 83.1 | 49.1 | 15.0 | 9.9 | 26.1 |
| Asian | 89.1 | 94.4 | 82.1 | 0.3 | -1.4* | -6.9* |
| Black | 66.8 | 77.5 | 42.6 | 22.6 | 15.5 | 32.6 |
| Hispanic | 73.8 | 81.9 | 53.6 | 15.6 | 11.1 | 21.6 |
| Multi-Racial | 83.6 | 89.3 | 64.6 | 5.8 | 3.7 | 10.6 |
| White | 89.4 | 93.0 | 75.2 | - | - | - |
*The performance of Asian students surpassed White students in 2005 by 1.4 percentage points. This trend continued in 2006, where they gained 6.9 percentage points in achievement over their White counterparts. In 2001, both Asians and White students had relatively the same percent proficiency in mathematics. Therefore, the gap in mathematics performance between white students and Asian students has widened from 2001 to 2006.
Table3: Percent Proficient and Achievement Gap in Reading and Mathematics by Ethnicity: 2001-2006
| STUDENT SUBGROUP | READING and MATHEMATICS End-of-Grade Composite Grades 3 through 8 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PERCENT PROFICIENT | ACHIEVEMENT GAP (Subgroups compared to White Students) | |||||
| 2001 | 2005 | 2006 | 2001 | 2005 | 2006 | |
| State | 71.1 | 79.7 | 61.2 | 10.8 | 8.4 | 12.3 |
| American Indian | 60.0 | 71.9 | 45.8 | 21.9 | 16.2 | 27.7 |
| Asian | 78.7 | 87.5 | 79.5 | 3.2 | 0.6 | -6.0* |
| Black | 51.9 | 66.1 | 40.0 | 30.0 | 22.0 | 33.5 |
| Hispanic | 58.7 | 68.5 | 49.3 | 23.2 | 19.6 | 24.2 |
| Multi-Racial | 75.2 | 82.5 | 62.6 | 6.7 | 5.6 | 10.9 |
| White | 81.9 | 88.1 | 73.5 | - | - | - |
* The performance of Asian students surpassed White students in 2006 by 6.0 percentage points, thereby creating a larger achievement gap between White students and Asian students.
Examination of Reading Test Scores: 2006
In 2006, all ethnic subgroups experienced a slight increase in achievement on the Reading EOG Test except for American Indian students. However, the degree of change (positive or negative) from 2005 to 2006 was minimal (=<1.5%) causing performance by subgroups to level off. The same holds true for the gap in achievement among these subgroups. All ethnic subgroups, except for American Indian students, show a slight reduction in the achievement gap from 2005 to 2006. Likewise, this change (decrease or increase) was minimal causing the achievement gap among subgroups to also level off on the Reading EOG Test in 2006. (See Table 4 for more information on the reading test scores.)
Table 4: Percent Proficient and Achievement Gap in Reading by Ethnicity: 2001-2006
| STUDENT SUBGROUP | READING End-of-Grade Composite Grades 3 through 8 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PERCENT PROFICIENT | ACHIEVEMENT GAP (Subgroups compared to White Students) | |||||
| 2001 | 2005 | 2006 | 2001 | 2005 | 2006 | |
| State | 77.1 | 84.6 | 84.9 | 8.6 | 6.6 | 6.5 |
| American Indian | 66.4 | 78.2 | 76.7 | 19.3 | 13.0 | 14.7 |
| Asian | 81.8 | 89.3 | 90.7 | 3.9 | 1.9 | 0.7 |
| Black | 60.7 | 74.7 | 75.3 | 25.0 | 16.5 | 16.1 |
| Hispanic | 65.0 | 73.3 | 73.9 | 20.7 | 17.9 | 17.5 |
| Multi-Racial | 81.1 | 87.2 | 87.8 | 4.6 | 4.0 | 3.6 |
| White | 85.7 | 91.2 | 91.4 | - | - | - |
OTHER SUBGROUP TRENDS
Examination of Reading Test Scores
Other subgroups in this report include free and reduced lunch, limited English proficient (LEP), migrant students, and students with disabilities. Figure 1 shows the performance trends for these subgroups on the Reading EOG Test from 2001 to 2006. Notably, all of these subgroups are performing below the State average. However, LEP students and students that qualify for free/reduced lunch and special education programs are showing an overall upward trend in performance, even though they have not made increases every year. Migrant student performance has been varied and inconsistent across years, showing significant gains from 2003 to 2004 but dropping to their lowest performance in 2006.
Examination of Mathematics and Combined Reading and Mathematics Test Scores: 2001-2005
Figures 2 and 3 show performance trends for these same subgroups from 2001 to 2005 on the Mathematics EOG test and the combined reading and mathematics tests. These graphs do not include 2006 data due to the new Mathematics EOG Test administered in the 2005-06 school year. For this reason, the 2006 performance data will be discussed separately.
Overall, the LEP, migrant, students with disabilities, and free and reduced lunch subgroups have experienced an increase in performance on both the Mathematics EOG Test and on the combined reading and mathematics tests from 2001 to 2005. However, all of these subgroups fall significantly behind the State average on these assessments. Even though overall student performance is increasing, performance is inconsistent from year to year, especially for LEP students, migrant students and students with disabilities. For example, LEP student performance increased by 12.3 percentage points on the Mathematics EOG Test from 2003 to 2004 but then dropped by as many as 4.1 percentage points the following year.
All subgroups (LEP, migrant, students with disabilities and free and reduced lunch) experienced greater success on the Mathematics EOG Test than they did on the Reading EOG Test.
Examination of Mathematics and Combined Reading and Mathematics Test Scores: 2006
In 2006, similar patterns of performance occur for the LEP, migrant, students with disabilities and free and reduced lunch subgroups. That is, all of these subgroups are still performing well below the State average when analyzing the mathematics test scores and the combined reading and mathematics test scores. (See Table 5 for more information on 2006 mathematics and combined reading and mathematics test scores.)
Table 5: Percent Proficient in Mathematics and Reading and Mathematics by Subgroup: 2006
| STUDENT SUBGROUP | Percent Proficient End-of-Grade Composite Grades 3 through 8 2006 | |
|---|---|---|
| MATHEMATICS | READING and MATHEMATICS | |
| State | 63.4 | 61.2 |
| Free and Reduced Lunch | 48.2 | 45.1 |
| Limited English Proficient | 41.6 | 34.8 |
| Migrant | 44.1 | 37.7 |
| Students with Disabilities | 36.5 | 30.8 |
Note: 2006 Mathematics EOG scores are identified separately due to the fact that a new Mathematics EOG test was administered in the 2005-2006 school year. The 2006 mathematics data is not comparable to previous mathematics test scores.
Summarily, among the LEP, migrant, students with disabilities and free and reduced lunch subgroups, students who qualify for free and reduced lunch are continuously the most proficient among these subgroups on the Reading and/or Mathematics EOG Tests. Also, students with disabilities are continuously the least proficient among all subgroups, including ethnic subgroups, on these same assessments.
SUMMARY
- Overall, student proficiency in reading and/or mathematics has increased from 2001 to 2005. This pattern of performance holds true for all subgroups except migrant students on the Reading EOG Test.
- A significant drop in performance was experienced by all subgroups from 2005 to 2006 on the Mathematics EOG Test. More significant was the widening of the achievement gap in mathematics from 2005 to 2006 for all ethnic groups except for Asian students.
- Hispanic, American Indian and Black students have had gains in proficiency from 2001 to 2005 on the Reading and/or Mathematics EOC Tests that have exceeded the State average. Gains in performance by White students are below the State average while gains in performance by Asian students are approximate to the State average.
- LEP students, migrant students and students with disabilities show an inconsistent pattern of performance based on mathematics and combined reading and mathematics test scores.
- Students with disabilities are the least proficient among all subgroups, including ethnic subgroups, on the Reading and/or Mathematics EOG Tests.