Statement by Secretary Spellings on Report Comparing State Proficiency Standards Using NAEP

In response to the National Center for Education Statistics’ release of the report Mapping 2005 State Proficiency Standards onto the NAEP Scales, U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings said the following:

This report offers sobering news that serious work remains to ensure that our schools are teaching students to the highest possible standards. States have made significant strides under No Child Left Behind to close our nation’s achievement gap, as evidenced by the Center on Education Policy study released earlier this week. But today’s report finds that many states’ assessment standards do not measure up to the rigorous standards of The Nation’s Report Card.

President Bush is committed to ensuring that all students are given the opportunity to compete and succeed in the 21st century global marketplace. His reauthorization proposal for No Child Left Behind would require students’ performance on state and NAEP assessments to appear side-by-side on the same report card so parents can compare how their state and school stack up. Through transparency, we can better gauge where states are and how far they have to go to reach grade-level proficiency for all students by 2014.

If we’re truly committed as a nation to closing the achievement gap and preparing all students for success, states must do their part by setting high standards and expectations. I hope this report will be a catalyst for positive change.