New York City public schools outpaced the rest of the state by dramatically increasing the number of students who met the state’s bar for proficiency in English and math this year.
City students in grades three through eight improved their proficiency by 3.3 percent in math and 1.5 percent in English. Math proficiency improved from 54 percent last year to 57.3 percent this year while English increased from 42.4 percent to 43.9 percent. The other big urban school districts in the state—Rochester, Yonkers, Buffalo, and Syracuse—did not see any increases.
“All of our students, teachers and principals should be very proud of their progress and the fact that we continue to raise achievement levels and outpace the rest of the state,” said Mayor Michael Bloomberg. “But as much progress as we have made, we know we have much more work to do. We are fully committed to ensuring that all of our students are prepared for a successful future.”
City students’ gains have outpaced students across the state on the annual English and math exams since 2002. In fourth grade English and math tests, NYC students have improved by 11 points, and by seven points in eighth grade math. While the state has either declined or stayed the same during that time, city students have seen improvements that are even greater than those in the rest of the nation.
“This is real proof that when expectations are raised, our students can rise to the occasion,” said Schools Chancellor Dennis Walcott. “It’s a model we plan to follow across the board—with higher standards in our curriculum, graduation requirements, and accountability measures for schools—to ensure our students are on track for success in college and careers. New York City students and families should be proud of their continued progress, even with these tougher standards for success.”
For the state as a whole, there was an increase in the percentage of students who met the proficiency standard in math, from 61 percent last year to 63.3 percent this year. However, there was a decrease in the number of students who met the English proficiency standard, falling from 53.2 percent to 52.8 percent.
Test scores can be viewed within ARIS Parent Link at arisparentlink.org starting on Wednesday, August 17. If you do not know your username and password, you can visit an ARIS Parent Link Access Station at select libraries from Monday, August 22 to Saturday, August 27.
