| | | October 14, 2009 - Minnesota Eighth-grade Students Ranked Second in National Math Assessment; Fourth-graders Rank Third
Minnesota Department of Education
For Immediate Release: Contact: Christine Dufour (651) 582-8720
Roseville – Minnesota eighth grade math students are ranked second in the
nation and the state’s fourth graders rank third in the 2009 National Assessment
of Educational Progress (NAEP) released today by the National Center for
Education Statistics.
The NAEP, administered nationally to fourth and eighth graders, again showed
Minnesota students surpassing the national average in mathematics. In
Minnesota, 6,000 students from 300 schools participated in the test.
"Minnesota’s focus on improving academic achievement, raising accountability
and increasing rigor is helping raise Minnesota students’ performance," said
Education Commissioner Alice Seagren. "Minnesota must continue to pursue
innovative educational reforms to ensure all Minnesota students are prepared for
career and college success."
Known as the "nation's report card," the NAEP is a federally mandated project
administered by the National Center for Education Statistics to continuously
monitor the knowledge, skills and performance of the nation's students. Since
1969, NAEP has measured and reported on the knowledge and abilities of
America's fourth, eighth and twelfth grade students, providing data about student
performance in a variety of subject areas at national, regional and state levels.
Minnesota Scores Compared to 2007
Minnesota (249) has one of the highest scale scores for fourth grade math
behind Massachusetts (252) and New Hampshire (251). No other state had a significantly higher score than Minnesota: Four states had similar scores (Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and New Jersey) and the rest were significantly lower than Minnesota.
Minnesota fourth-grade students improved math scores by two points (from 247 to 249) exceeding the national average by ten points (249 compare to 239).
In eighth-grade, Minnesota (294) was second in the nation exceeded only by Massachusetts (299). Vermont, North Dakota and New Jersey and New Hampshire scored similar to Minnesota (293), and all other states scoring significantly lower.
Eighth-grade students improved in math (from 292 to 294), mirroring the
national average increase (from 280 to 282). Minnesota remains 12 points
above the national average and only Massachusetts posted results
statistically higher than Minnesota.
African-American and Hispanic fourth grade improvement from 2007
Minnesota’s African-American students improved from 222 to 227 in fourth grade mathematics and exceeded the nation’s scale score (222). Minnesota remains five points above the nation (222).
Minnesota Hispanic students improved from 229 to 232 in fourth-grade
mathematics and exceeded the nation’s scale score by five points (227).
Minnesota’s African-American students made improvements from 260 to 264 in eighth-grade mathematics and exceeded the nation’s scale score (260). Minnesota remains four points above the national average (260).
Minnesota Hispanic students remained at 269 in eighth-grade mathematics
with Hispanic students scoring four points above the national average 266.
To narrow the achievement gap, a specific student group must make faster
progress or have higher average score changes compared to white students.
"While Minnesota African-American and Hispanic student’s math achievement
remains above the national average, Minnesota must remain committed to
preparing every student for success in the 21st Century," said Commissioner
Seagren. "There is more work to be done and we remain dedicated to working
with school districts to implement reforms and initiatives designed to lay the
foundation for success for every Minnesota student."
For more information regarding Minnesota's performance on the 2009 NAEP
Mathematics, visit http://nationsreportcard.gov/.
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