Florida Students Must “Qualify” to Take the Fourth-grade NAEP
Jeb Bush wants to be president. So, it is important that he sell his Florida education reforms as a success.
However, when test-score-based education reforms are put on display, one should seek out “the rest of the story.” Such is true when Florida’s fourth-grade NAEP scores are showcased
According to a post written by Jeb Bush’s right-hand, Patricia Levesque, in October 2014, Florida has made marvelous, gap-closing gains, particularly on the fourth-grade NAEP:
Florida Minority Students Outperforming the Nation: In 2013, Florida outperformed the national average in every subgroup for fourth-grade reading.
- Florida’s fourth-grade low-income readers rank first in the nation in reading.
- Florida’s black fourth-grade students outperform their peers nationally by more than half a grade level in reading.
- Hispanic fourth-grade students outperform the average student in 38 states and their peers by almost two full grade levels, according to NAEP reading test.
- Low-income Hispanic fourth-grade student achievement improved more than one grade level from 2003-2013 according to the 2013 NAEP reading test.
- Florida’s eighth-grade black students rank 7th nationally in reading and are tied with two other states for 11th in eighth-grade math.
What Levesque does not include is “the rest” of the fourth-grade NAEP story, which involves high student retention rates in third grade based upon state test results, a practice that has been part of Florida law since 2003.
Retaining students who cannot pass state tests in third grade artificially “improves” Florida Students Must “Qualify” to Take the Fourth-grade NAEP | deutsch29:
