July 1, 2010 - Math Scores Improve Across the Board as State Releases MCA Test Results

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12:01 a.m. July 1, 2010	(651) 582-8720

Math Scores Improve Across the Board as State Releases
MCA Test Results

~Data reveals success of strong high stakes graduation requirements~

(Roseville, MN) – Minnesota students in grades three through eight and grade eleven improved their scores in math this spring as over 426,000 students took the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCA) in math and reading. While reading scores stayed relatively constant for most grades, the eleventh grade results continued their upward trend for the second year in a row.

In fact, grade ten reading scores have improved ten percentage points since 2006, with most of the gains coming after the legislature implemented the high stakes graduation requirement for reading starting in 2008. After significant gains in 2009, the grade eleven math results showed only a modest improvement. The legislature eliminated the graduation requirement for high school math in 2009.

“The hard work of students, parents and teachers in our statewide focus on math is really starting to pay off with these steadily improving test results in elementary and middle school,” Minnesota Education Commissioner Alice Seagren said. “Today’s results also show what happens when we raise expectations for our high school students and hold them accountable for their efforts in reading by requiring a certain level of proficiency for graduation.”


Math MCA-II - Percentage of Students Proficient by Grade
Grade	3	4	5	6	7	8	11
2009	82.1%	74.9%	65.4%	63.8%	62.6%	59.7%	41.6%
2010	82.8%	77.0%	68.6%	69.0%	64.4%	58.6%	43.3%
Reading MCA-II - Percentage of Students Proficient by Grade
Grade	3	4	5	6	7	8	10
2009	78.3%	74.5%	72.2%	72.6%	64.8%	66.8%	74.2%
2010	76.3%	72.5%	76.4%	71.6%	66.1%	68.1%	75.3%

Minority students made significant gains in certain grades such as sixth grade math (black students +5%, Hispanic students +6%) and fifth grade reading (black students +7%), but since all student groups improved, there is no significant progress to report on Minnesota’s achievement gap.

MDE is scheduled to release Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) results based on the MCA-II results in early August. AYP is the measure of student performance under the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB).

Minnesota Comprehensive Assessments (MCA-II)

The Math and Reading MCA-IIs meet the requirements of the federal No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB), which requires that all students be proficient by 2014. The assessments are administered in reading in grades three through eight and grade ten, and in math in grades three through eight and grade eleven.

This spring, approximately 426,000 students took the Math and Reading MCA-IIs, which measure student performance on the Minnesota Academic Standards. Those standards define what students should know and be able to do in a particular grade and are developed in partnership with Minnesota educators. On the MCA-IIs, each student earns a score in one of four achievement levels: Does Not Meet Standards, Partially Meets Standards, Meets the Standards, or Exceeds the Standards. Students who meet or exceed standards on the MCA-II are considered proficient.

MCA-II Reading and Math Results

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http://education.state.mn.us/MDE/About_MDE/News_Center/Press_Releases/017799