Student Achievement Continues to Rise Under No Child Left Behind
Student Achievement Continues to Rise Under No Child Left Behind
October 19, 2005
Republican Education Leaders Hail Achievement Gains & Narrowing of the Achievement Gap on 'the Nation's Report Card'
WASHINGTON, D.C. - House Committee on Education & the Workforce Chairman John Boehner (OH-8) today highlighted student academic achievement gains revealed in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), known as "the Nation's Report Card." Since the bipartisan No Child Left Behind Act was enacted in 2002, student test scores have steadily improved in reading and mathematics, with larger gains among disadvantaged and minority students who had previously been allowed to lag behind without strong accountability systems focused on high achievement for all students.
"Today's results clearly demonstrate that significant progress in student achievement is being made and that No Child Left Behind is working," said Boehner. "Students, teachers, and schools deserve great credit for the improvements we've seen since President Bush's education reform initiative was signed into law, ushering in the most sweeping education reforms in a generation."
"Overall student achievement in the U.S. continues to rise, according to results from The 2005 Nation's Report Card, with some of the larger gains being made by the nation's Black, Hispanic, and high-poverty students," found the National Assessment Governing Board, which administers the NAEP assessment program.
Some key findings of the 2005 Nation's Report Card:
* For 4th grade students, average reading and mathematics scores increased and the gap between white and African-American students narrowed in both subjects.
* The achievement gaps in 8th grade math between white and African-American students narrowed to its lowest point since 1990.
* Overall 4th and 8th grade math scores rose to all-time highs, and overall 4th grade reading scores matched the all-time high.
* African-American 4th graders posted the highest reading and math scores in the history of the assessments.
"Through No Child Left Behind, we made it a national priority to improve student achievement and close achievement gaps that have persisted between disadvantaged students and their peers," said Boehner. "Accountability systems have taken hold and students are posting historic achievement gains."
http://johnboehner.house.gov/News.asp?FormMode=Detail&ID=1035