STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- In the second year of new, tougher standards for math and English language arts exams, city students have made small strides in both subjects, even as they continue to score well below the state average. Citywide, proficiency in both tests increased: 43.9 percent of students met or exceeded the ELA standards, up from 42.4 percent...
School Chancellor Dennis Walcott speaks at the Port Richmond High School graduation on June 27. City officials will discuss the exam results this afternoon.STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- In the second year of new, tougher standards for math and English language arts exams, city students have made small strides in both subjects, even as they continue to score well below the state average.
Citywide, proficiency in both tests increased: 43.9 percent of students met or exceeded the ELA standards, up from 42.4 percent last year, and 57.3 percent met or exceed standards in math, up from 54 percent last year.
Statewide, scores were higher but dropped slightly in English and rose slightly in math. In English, 52.8 percent of students met or exceeded the proficiency standards, down from 53.2 percent in 2010. In math, 63.3 percent met or exceeded the standard in math, up from 61 percent last year.
"Student outcomes have been stubbornly flat over time," Education Commissioner John B. King said. "The Regents reform agenda is designed to change that, by driving long-term gains in student performance."
The exams, given to students in grades 3 through 8, were revamped with higher proficiency standards in 2010 -- and the the number of students scoring proficient or better plummeted that year. This year's exams received additional changes: there were more multiple choice questions, and every grade level of ELA exam required students to write at least on essay.
While New York City lags behind the statewide average, students here out-performed students in other large cities, including Buffalo, Rochester, Syracuse and Yonkers, by wide margins.
The test cut-off scores for proficient and better were raised by the Board of Regents last year after research showed students could score "proficient" on the exams and still struggle in high school and need remediation in college to succeed there. The new scores better reflect what students need to know to achieve college-ready scores when they take the Regents exam in high school: an 80 or above on a math Regents and a 75 or above on the English Regents.
The state Education Department released the test scores at 11 a.m. Borough and school specific test results will be released and discussed by city education officials around noon.