Januar y 28, 2016

achieve.org

STATE TEST RESULTS ARE GETTING CLOSER TO

STUDENT ACHIEVEMENT ON NAEP
PARENTS, STUDENTS, AND TEACHERS BENEFIT
In 2015, we first released this report, Proficient vs. Prepared, showing large disparities between most state test results and the National
Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). With states taking action to transition to new, more rigorous tests over the past couple of
years and also setting new levels of proficiency or cut scores, states deserve a lot of credit for reducing or even eliminating the honesty
gap that existed. With standards and tests that gauge whether students are able to show they can do grade-level work, parents are
provided better information so they can partner with educators to impact student achievement.
The 2016 edition of the Proficient vs. Prepared report demonstrates that most states acknowledged and corrected their reporting of student proficiency. Parents, students, and teachers in the states where gaps closed are now getting information from state tests that are
much closer to other proficiency indicators allowing them to make more informed decisions for their individual students. And, policymakers and the general public now have better information to make decisions to improve school systems.
As we said in the first report, no single test can show everything we need to know about how a student is performing in school. Test
scores along with information about a students work in the classroom, however, give families the information they need to know about
a students progress.
Findings
Sixteen states have eliminated or nearly eliminated their gap (state scores are within five percentage points of NAEP scores) in one or
both subjects: AZ, AR, CO, DE, DC, GA, IL, ME, MD, MI, MS, NH, NM, RI, SC, WV
Nine more have made significant progress toward closing their gaps (by 10 percentage points or more in either 4th grade reading or 8th
grade math) but still have gaps of more than five percentage points: AK, HI, IN, LA, NJ, PA, OH, OR, WA
Three states continued to have moderate gaps between five and 20 percentage points: AL, KY, MN
Two states gaps remained roughly the same with at least one gap of more than 20 percentage points: NC, TN
Three states had mixed results: MO, WI, WY
Four states, some of whom have increased the gap between their state and NAEP scores, continue to insist that far more students
are proficient than their NAEP scores indicate: IA, OK, TX, and VA
Three states had a small or no gap last year and maintained that small gap this year: MA, NY, UT
Its important to note that this report does not compare the content of the tests, but only of the percentage of students deemed proficient on each. NAEP is one benchmark to make sure parents are getting the truth from state tests. Some states have used benchmarks
from ACT.
What is proficiency?
NAEP defines proficiency as solid academic performance for each grade assessed. Students reaching this level have demonstrated
competency over challenging subject matter, including subject-matter knowledge, application of such knowledge to real-world situations, and analytical skills approximate to the subject matter. (http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/achievement.aspx)

If you have questions about how many students took each state assessment, please contact the state department of
education.

Assessments

achieve.org
4th Grade Reading NAEP vs. State Proficiency
State
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming

Assessments

2013-14 Gap

2014-15 Gap

-7
-51
-48
-51
N/A
-26
N/A
-35
-27
-22
-60
-42
N/A
-23
-48
-37
N/A
-18
-53
-29
-41
-7
-39
-14
-36
-11
N/A
-41
-42
-30
-18
-23
5
-21
-41
-49
-35
-39
-28
-32
-49
N/A
-15
-46
-5
N/A
-27
-30
-16
-1
-27

-9
-10
-12
-2
-11
-3
-12
-17
1
N/A
-3
-19
-10
-2
-30
-39
N/A
-12
-11
-11
-3
-7
-18
-19
-4
-23
N/A
N/A
N/A
-10
-8
-1
3
-21
N/A
-34
-37
-15
-18
2
0
-9
-12
-43
-2
-6
-34
-15
-15
-13
-19

8th Grade Math NAEP vs. State Proficiency

State
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming

2013-14 Gap

2014-15 Gap

-9
-35
-28
-36
N/A
-10
N/A
-35
-46
-16
-53
-28
N/A
-24
-43
-39
N/A
-15
-43
-16
-22
3
-5
-11
-46
-20
N/A
-30
-9
-17
-23
-17
10
-6
-25
-40
-29
-28
-31
-21
-39
N/A
-19
-48
-2
N/A
-29
-14
-15
-6
-12

-10
6
1
8
-6
18
-1
-5
2
N/A
-9
-9
-3
1
-14
-40
N/A
-16
-14
2
12
-2
-3
-10
-6
-10
N/A
N/A
N/A
2
22
12
9
-10
N/A
-18
-30
-9
6
20
-6
-4
-25
-43
-4
2
-36
-7
-4
2
-12

Appendix: Additional 2013-14 and 2014-15 Comparison Tables

4th Grade Math NAEP vs. State Proficiency
State
Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming

Assessments

2013-14 Gap 2014-15 Gap

-15
-37
-22
-37
N/A
-22
N/A
-32
-31
-22
-43
-18
N/A
-25
-31
-31
N/A
-8
-50
-16
-34
6
-8
-11
-40
-4
N/A
-32
-36
-14
-26
-12
-2
-9
-31
-30
-30
-24
-32
-21
-40
N/A
-8
-30
-4
N/A
-33
-13
-9
-5
1

-22
-4
-4
8
-6
13
-3
-10
3
N/A
-4
-8
-5
9
-15
-36
N/A
-9
-3
1
9
7
-7
-17
3
-11
N/A
N/A
N/A
2
7
9
-8
-12
N/A
-20
-35
-7
1
10
-13
-4
-10
-29
-7
-2
-37
-7
-2
-3
-3

achieve.org
8th Grade Reading NAEP vs. State Proficiency
State

Alabama
Alaska
Arizona
Arkansas
California
Colorado
Connecticut
Delaware
District of Columbia
Florida
Georgia
Hawaii
Idaho
Illinois
Indiana
Iowa
Kansas
Kentucky
Louisiana
Maine
Maryland
Massachusetts
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
Missouri
Montana
Nebraska
Nevada
New Hampshire
New Jersey
New Mexico
New York
North Carolina
North Dakota
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
South Carolina
South Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
Utah
Vermont
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
Wisconsin
Wyoming

2013-14 Gap

2014-15 Gap

-23
-53
-42
-47
N/A
-26
N/A
-38
-37
-24
-65
-44
N/A
-20
-41
-38
N/A
-14
-42
-33
-35
-31
-40
-15
-37
-15
N/A
-41
-23
-34
-34
-37
1
-21
-40
-48
-43
-29
-37
-38
-38
N/A
-14
-59
-3
N/A
-34
-30
-23
2
-20

-18
0
-4
-5
-17
-3
-11
-18
-6
N/A
-8
-21
-15
-3
-26
-41
N/A
-18
-17
-12
-3
-18
-16
-16
-11
-22
N/A
N/A
N/A
-13
-11
-3
-2
-23
N/A
-32
-46
-21
-19
0
-19
-13
-17
-50
-5
-10
-39
-20
-16
-14
-16