State Test Score Trends Through 2008-09, Part 5

Introduction For decades, researchers, policymakers, and the media have raised concerns about the academic achievement of high school students. High dropout rates, mediocre achievement relative to other nations, and inadequate readiness for college and careers have led some analysts to conclude that If achievement is indeed a problem in high school, to what extent is this apparent in trends on state tests? This report by the Center on Education Policy (CEP), an independent nonprofit organization, examines trends in the achievement of high school students on the state reading/English language arts (ELA) and mathematics tests used for accountability under the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB). In most states, these tests are first administered in grade 10 or 11, although some states use end-of-course exams not tied to a particular high school grade. We looked at trends from 2002 (or a more recent year in several states) through 2009 for high school students overall and for African American, Asian American, Latino, Native American, white, low-income, male, and female students. Trends in average (mean) test scores were analyzed, along with trends in percentages of students scoring at or above the proficient and advanced levels of achievement on state tests. We also compared trends at the high school level with those at grades 4 and 8. Forty states and the District of Columbia had sufficient data to be included in at least some of the analyses for this study. (D. C. is counted as a state in the tallies in this report.) States were omitted if they had too few years of comparable test data due to changes in their tests or their cut scores for proficient performance. Our study confirms that there is reason for concern about the achievement of high school students. In this era of NCLB and demands for greater test-based accountability, state test scores have increased in high schools, just as they have done in elementary and middle schools. But high school students show markedly less progress than students at the other two levels. Moreover, gaps between various groups of high school students have widened at the advanced achievement level in many states. Key findings from this study include the following:  Although high school students made gains in average test scores and proficiency in most of the states analyzed, fewer states showed gains at high school than at grades 4 and 8. More than three-fourths of these states …