Florida's academic report card has shown dramatic improvement in FCAT scores and school grades, a performance Gov. Jeb Bush hails as a clear sign his education reforms are working.
But the picture isn't as pretty when Florida's performance is compared with other states.
According to results released Thursday, Florida ranks at or near the bottom third of the nation in a reading test administered by the National Assessment of Educational Progress, often referred to as the nation's report card.
That's the same position the state occupied in 1998, the last time Florida students took the test.
The 2002 NAEP reading test for fourth- and eighth-graders was the first time since the introduction of Bush's A+ Education plan that the state has been able to plot its progress against other states.
The results? Significant gains in both fourth- and eighth-grade reading scores. And still Florida remains below most states.
"The improvement that you had was impressive, but everybody's been working on reading," said Kathy Christie with the Education Commission of States. "Other states have had an intense focus on reading, and they're showing improvement, too."
Bush and Education Commissioner Jim Horne saw plenty to like in the NAEP scores.
Florida improved by 8 points on fourth-grade reading, while the national average increased four points. As for other states, Texas' fourth-graders improved only by three points, and Georgia's improved by six. Still, both states remain ahead of Florida.
The eighth-grade scores told a similar story.
Florida improved six points in eighth-grade reading, while the national average increased just two points. The state was still at or near the bottom third, but it tied for the second-best increase.
Another bright spot was the percentage of Florida students who scored at or above the proficient level - meaning they can handle challenging material at their grade level.
The percentage of fourth-graders who reached proficiency increased from 22 percent to 27 percent. The percentage of proficient eighth-graders increased from 23 percent to 29 percent, one of the biggest increases in the nation.
"The changes we have made in education during the past four years have resulted in higher student achievement," Bush said in a written statement Thursday. "Not only are more students reading on grade level than ever before, Florida is closing the achievement gap by using accountability to identify and address those areas where students need the most help."
Florida's FCAT test was created specifically for the state's students, and is intended to measure progress on the state's own academic standards. The NAEP is widely accepted as a way for states to compare their progress nationally.
"It's always good when your state scores and the NAEP scores are going in the same direction - up," said Steve Gorman of the National Center for Educational Statistics, an arm of the U.S. Department of Education.
Florida's NAEP scores, when broken down by race and ethnicity, show mixed results.
White, black and Hispanic students all showed improvements in reading scores.
In fourth grade, white students as a group improved 10 points, while black students improved seven points and Hispanic students improved nine points. That suggests a slight widening of the achievement gap.
In eighth grade, the opposite occurred. Both black and Hispanic students still trailed their white peers, but the minorities improved at a higher rate.
Florida's Hispanic students seem to be doing a better job than those in most states. For instance, 20 percent of Florida's Hispanic students scored at or above the proficient level in fourth grade. That compares with 10 percent in California, 15 percent in Georgia and 18 percent in Texas.
Nationally, the results were generally promising. Fourth-graders showed significant improvements in reading, while eighth-graders improved slightly.
"Today's results show that the best students are still getting better, but the lower-performing students are getting better, too," said U.S. Education Secretary Rod Paige.
The NAEP test is given to a cross-section of students nationwide.
In 2002, some 270,000 students from 11,000 schools nationwide took the reading test. Not all states take the test.
For instance, Florida did not participate in 2000. In 2002, 43 states participated in the fourth-grade reading test, and 41 states participated in the eighth-grade test.
- Staff writer Constance Humburg contributed to this report.
