California's Academic Performance Remains Poor

State's 2011 math and reading scores show little improvement.

It was another difficult academic year for California schools, according to 2011 math and reading scores released Tuesday. The state continues to lag behind the rest of the country in academic performance, with only Mississippi and the District of Columbia performing worse.

The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is given to a sample of fourth and eight grade students in each sate every two years. It's results are presented in The National Report Card, which measures state and national achievement in math and reading.  

With the exception of fourth grade reading, scores across the country rose overall since 2009, but only Hawaii showed significant gains in both subjects for both grade levels.

Reports show that nationally, 40 percent of fourth graders and 35 percent of eight graders showed proficiency in math, while 34 percent of students in both grades were proficient in reading. The scores are slightly up from 2009, with the exception of fourth grade reading, which remained stagnant.

In California by comparison, only 34 percent of fourth graders and 25 percent of eight graders were proficient in math, while 25 percent of fourth graders and 24 percent of eight graders showed reading proficiency. The scores show no significant improvement from the year before.
 

Contact Us