Academic progress of minority students often overlooked

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Academic progress of minority students often overlooked

By Qcity Staff – May 10, 2011

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As the debate continues over whether or not federal investments in education have produced results, one important trend tends to be overlooked -- namely, the notable gains made by African American and Latino students in reading and math achievement.

According to data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), in both subjects and at all three ages tested, the increases in achievement for African American and Latino students were substantially higher than the average gains for students overall across the nation.

For example, between the early 1970's and 2008, reading scores for 9-year-olds rose by 14 points for white students, 34 points for African American students, and 25 points for Latino students.

This contrast between trends for students overall and for racial/ethnic groups is especially notable at age 17. Between the early 1970's and 2008, math scores at this age improved by 4 points for white students, 17 points for African American students, and 16 points for Latino students. Reading scores increased by 4 points for white 17-year-olds, 28 points for African Americans, and 17 points for Latinos.

According to Jack Jennings, President and CEO of the Center on Education Policy, U.S. schools have made mixed progress during the past four decades in raising achievement for students overall but have shown substantial success in improving performance for racial/ethnic groups.