Fourth- and eighth-grade students in Maryland eligible for free and reduced meals raised their reading and math scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress -- the standardized test known as "the Nation's Report Card" -- by a combined 55 points between 2003 and 2011, according to a report by the advocacy and research organization Education Sector.
In fourth place, low-income students in the District raised their scores by 43.3 points. Virginia ranked 40th, with a gain of 15.9 points.
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Notice the word FREE. Free meals and reduced meal cost who show a little incentive. Now, lets look at the scores of kids who are not on this program. Anybody have those numbers? This is just more O'Malley Democratic bull. Why not tell both sides of the story? Compare the scores of the kids that are not on the program.
ReplyDeleteTell me where the lowest scores is thats where i am moving too.
ReplyDeleteThis article is useless until and unless they include the students who test with "accommodations" made, in other words the tests are modified, those who are "excused" and those who are completely "exempt" from taking standardized tests.
ReplyDeleteThat's great! I love to see them achieve.
ReplyDeleteNow lets try to get them up to par with the rest of their classmates instead of them reading at a 3rd grade level in the 6th grade.
Fact is, this is propaganda from the teachers Unions and Elitists to try to prove the value of their Robinhood redistribution methods.
The truth is these students are well below students with A mother and father, married, earning a living, caring about their children etc...
Some states can't show massive gains because their students weren't that far behind to begin with.
ReplyDeleteThe data from 2009 (most recent I could find) shows that 14% of MD
ReplyDelete4th graders have a disability identified. Of those 14%, 63% were excused from testing and 37% were tested with "accommodations."
8th grade-12% identified, of those 59% excused from taking the test and 32% provided with accommodations.
When you dumbing the test down, the scores will go high. We have kids getting higher grades but they are too dumb to get in out of the rain!
ReplyDelete"when you dumbing the test down"--it's nice to see the pot calling the kettle black. Or, if that's too advanced a metaphor, it's nice to see that the biggest moron on the comment board is the one complaining the loudest about education. (Hint: you ARE missing a verb)
ReplyDelete6:35
ReplyDeleteSource, please? I think your numbers are off by several orders of magnitude.
Really, can you believe scores after finding of teachers altering tests?
ReplyDeleteWhen they start giving tests online so teachers cannot tamper with them I'll believe the numbers.
9:46-Info came from a site called The Advocacy Institute, which describes itself as "improving the lives of those with disabilities."
ReplyDeleteThey cite their sources as thenationalreportcard.gov
From what I've been able to gather it's voluntary for states to submit this data and as people are becoming wise to the true nature of these tests more states are opting out and not turning over these figures. MD choose to not ever report the percentages of high school students in which accommodations are available. Can one assume then that this was a very high percentage, something to keep hidden from the public?
I'd like to correct my earlier post.
ReplyDelete14% of MD 4th graders are identified as having a disability. Of that 14%, 63% were excluded from testing and 25% were tested with accommodations, NOT 37% as I had originally posted.
Sorry for the mistake. I posted from a wrong column and noticed this morning when the figures equaled 100% which I knew was incorrect as some do take the test without accommodations.
I'd also like to add that according to this data MD has an extremely high test exclusion rate. The national average for
ReplyDelete4th grade is 28%-8th grade also
28%. MD 4th-63% and 8th-59%. Appears Wash DC's exclusion rate is the only one higher than MD's.