Hawai‘i’s 8th Grade Reading Stands Out in ‘Nation’s Report Card’

Hawaiʻi is one of only ten states to show an increase in 8th Grade reading scores in 2017, according to “The Nation’s Report Card” released by the National Assessment of Educational Progress.

Maui Now graphic.

State school superintendent Christina Kishimoto called the uptick for four scaled points “encouraging” saying is shows solid progress and reflects the hard work of both students and teachers.

The same report showed a 2 point drop in 8th grade math, a 1 point increase in 4th grade reading, and no change in math scores for 4th graders from two years earlier.

Education officials say Hawaiʻi’s percentage of students scoring ‘Proficient’ in reading and math has increased steadily over the last decade. The results come following a national drop in test results from 2013 to 2015.

The NAEP assessment was originally designed to provide a common measure of student performance across the country at a time when there was no consistency among state academic standards or common measures to compare states. This includes college and career readiness standards adopted by states, including Hawaiʻi, in the last decade.

“We are very proud of the progress in our reading scores. We also need to strengthen our math performance and close the gap with national scores,” said Assistant Superintendent Rodney Luke, Office of Strategy, Innovation, and Performance. “Math scores are often correlated to college and career readiness and we want our younger students to continue the momentum of our Advanced Placement and dual credit programs when they reach high school. Improving reading and math scores will demand strategic planning, thinking and action and we know our students will be up to the task.”

2,300 grade 4 students and 2,200 grade 8 students represented Hawaiʻi in the 2017 NAEP math exam, along with 2,300 grade 4 students and 2,200 grade 8 students in the reading exam.