Secretary
DeVos on the National Assessment of Educational Progress: “We can and we
must do better for America’s students”
WASHINGTON – The Institute of Education
Sciences today released the 2017 National Assessment of Educational Progress
(NAEP), commonly referred to as the “Nation’s Report Card”. U.S. Secretary of
Education Betsy DeVos issued the following statement in response:
“The report card is in, and the
results are clear: We can and we must do better for America’s students.
Our nation’s reading and math scores continue to stagnate. More
alarmingly, the gap between the highest and lowest performing students is
widening, despite billions in Federal funding designated specifically to help
close it.
“One bright spot in today’s report
is Florida, where Sunshine State students are bucking the national trend,
showing significant improvement in 4th and 8th grade
math and in 8th grade reading. Both low and high
performers in Florida demonstrated that improvement, again bucking the national
trend and narrowing the achievement gap.
“Florida leaders, administrators, and,
most importantly, teachers are to be commended for their continued efforts on
behalf of students. Florida has been at the forefront of bold,
comprehensive education reform for decades. From accountability, to
literacy, to teacher certification and recognition, to providing parents more
freedom to select the learning environment that best fits their students’
needs, Florida is rethinking education.
“Florida’s results show what is
possible when we focus on individual students. This Administration is
committed to working with States and communities across our country to bring
about the much-needed change our students deserve.
“Many thanks to the professional
staff at the National Center for Education Statistics and the members of the
National Assessment Governing Board for their work and for their commitment to
continually improving NAEP.”
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