May 11, 2004

LANSING – Michigan public elementary and junior high school students performed better in seven subjects of this winter’s Michigan Educational Assessment Program (MEAP) test over last year’s scores, according to the Michigan Department of Education, and the achievement gaps narrowed between white and African American students.

The state’s 4th and 8th grade math scores, in particular, saw significant growth over last year’s scores, noted state Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Watkins.

"We see an 11 percent jump this year in the number of 8th graders who meet or exceed Michigan standards for the math test, and an eight percent improvement in 4th graders," Watkins said. "We are encouraged that Michigan students are improving their academic achievement as it is being reflected in their test scores, but we have much more work to do.

"My sincere thanks to our parents and teachers for their efforts to help our children learn," he added.

Beginning to Close the Achievement Gap

As meaningful, Watkins noted, was a narrowing of the achievement gap between the test scores of African American and white students.

African American students had greater improvement levels in their 4th and 8th grade math; 4th and 8th grade writing; and 4th grade reading scores than other students, thus reducing the gap in educational achievement.

The 4th grade math scores for African American students increased by 10 percentage points (43-53% meeting or exceeding state standards), while the scores for white students increased by six percent (73-79%). Eighth grade math scores improved 13 percentage points (21-34%) for African American students, compared to 11 percent (60-71%) for white students.

"Much more improvement is needed, but it’s promising to see these gaps narrowing," Watkins said. "Governor Granholm and the State Board of Education are focused on narrowing the gaps and increasing achievement of all students, especially in Michigan’s High Priority schools."

The state has developed direct assistance programs to help improve educational systems and methods at these High Priority schools – school that have struggled with low achievement scores over several years.

"Our efforts have established a foothold in addressing the needs," said Governor Jennifer Granholm. "We need to keep striving for excellence and I applaud the commitment of our local schools and communities that have embraced these programs to improve teaching and learning."

Action to Improve Social Studies and Writing

Overall, Michigan students improved their scores in seven of the 10 sep arate tests, maintained their level in 7th grade reading, and dropped only in 7th grade writing and 8th grade social studies.

State Board of Education President Kathleen N. Straus recognizes there still is room for improvement in all test scores, but she pointed out two subject areas – writing and social studies – that need special attention because less than half of Michigan students score at or above state standards.

"Writing and social studies are important for our children to know," Straus said. "We know that the emphasis of the federal No Child Left Behind law is reading and math, but our children need writing skills and social studies knowledge.

"To be successful in this 21st Century global economy, our children must be aware of the world around them and be able to clearly communicate their thoughts and ideas," she added.

The State Board of Education is establishing a Task Force of social studies teachers and testing experts to make recommendations on what the state can do to improve social studies education, teaching methods, and student test scores.

The Social Studies Task Force will be chaired by state Representative Doug Hart (R-Rockford), a former middle school history and civics teacher who has been a leader in elevating the importance of teaching social studies and civics to Michigan’s children. A similar task force will be convened for writing skills.

The 2004 Winter tests were taken by Michigan’s 4th, 5th, 7th, and 8th grade students over a three-week period of time in late January through early February.

Fourth graders were tested in math and English Language Arts; 7th graders were tested in English Language Arts; and 5th and 8th graders were tested in science, social studies, and math. English Language Arts results are in their second year of existence and are derived from separate subtests in reading and writing.

In addition to 73 percent of the 4th graders and 63 percent of the 8 th graders who met or exceeded the state standards for math, other notable results include 79 percent of 4th graders met or exceeded standards in reading (up from 75 percent last year) and 78 percent of 5th graders met or exceeded standards in science (up from 77 percent).

Scores Returned on Timely Basis

Today’s release of the Winter MEAP scores marks the return to on-time reporting, overcoming delays experienced last year due to problems with a private vendor that the state no longer contracts with.

"When the MEAP program came back to the Department of Education in December, our initial goal was to get the results back in a clean and prompt manner to provide valuable educational diagnostic information to help our teachers teach and our children learn," Watkins said.

"Under the leadership of our Chief Academic Officer Dr. Jeremy Hughes, Ed Roeber has come in and done a remarkable job in improving the processes and systems in the MEAP office to get us back to where we need to be."

Dr. Roeber, the Senior Executive Director in the Office of Educational Assessment and Accountability, is a nationally-renowned testing expert. He ran the MEAP program from 1976-91 before becoming a private testing consultant. He returned to the Michigan Department of Education last fall.

Summary statewide reports for MEAP testing at all grade levels, as well as individual school building results for public school districts and public school academies are available by logging on to the Michigan Department of Education website.