Demographics: Can they Account for the Rise in the District’s Standardized Test Scores?

A recent article from the Washington Post, “D.C. students’ proficiency rates inch upward on annual city tests”, presents various statistics derived from the 2014 D.C. Comprehensive Assessment Systems. The article correctly sheds light to positive results from this year’s test scores but it undermines the alarming results of minority, low-income, and underprivileged children. You will find the reported statistics in the following two columns. On the left lies the increases seen in this year’s test scores, and on the right, the drawbacks from this year’s results. 

Positives Reported 

• Up 1.4 percentage points: Average Student Proficiency Rates in math 
  
• Up less than 1 percentage point: Average Student Proficiency Rates in reading 
  
• Up 3 percentage points to 45%: Average Student Proficiency Rates in science
  
• 54% of students scored high enough to be considered proficient in math 
  
• 49.9% of students considered proficient in reading 

Since 2007:

• 23% increase in math proficiency level 
• 14% increase in reading proficiency level

Charter schools: 

• 60% math proficiency level. Up 1% from last year 
  
• 53.4% reading proficiency level. Up .5% from last year 

Traditional schools: 

• 51% math proficiency level. Up 1.6% from last year 
  
• 48% reading proficiency level. Up .33% from last year 

10th Grade 

• 4.1 point rise in math proficiency for traditional schools
  
• 7.4 point rise in math proficiency for charter schools 
  
• 3.8 point rise in reading proficiency for traditional schools 
  
• 3 point rise in reading proficiency for charter schools 
  

Negatives Reported 

• Down 1 Percentage point to 50%: Average Student Proficiency Rate in Writing 
• Latino Proficiency Rates dropped in reading for traditional and charter schools 
  
• ESOL Student Proficiency Rates dropped  in reading and math at traditional and charter schools
  
• Economically disadvantaged students saw a drop in Reading Proficiency
  
• 44% of African Americans compared to 92% of whites were proficient in reading 

Since 2009:

• Drop in reading proficiency levels for African Americans from 41% to 39% 
  
• Drop in reading proficiency levels for ESOL students from 47% to 36%
  
• Drop in reading proficiency levels for poor children and children with disabilities. 

When looking at a long-term period, the District's schools improved their DCAS Test scores; however, when looking at short term gains, between 2013 and 2014, the rate of improvement slowed down. Additionally, one must hesitate when drawing a correlation between test scores and educational improvement in the District's schools. One factor to consider, demographics, can instead account for the rise in scores.  From 2000 to 2013, The Urban Institute reports that the District has added over 74,000 residents leading to the first incline in public school enrollment since the 1960's. Focusing on race and demographics, they also report that "...[i]n 1980, 70 percent of DC's population was black; that share fell to 61 percent in 2000 and 51 percent by 2010 ... What has been different in recent years is that, in addition to blacks moving out, as they have done in prior decades, whites and others are now moving in and are more likely to stay". The influx of whites also correlates with higher education levels in the area's residents: "the number of births to college-educated women shot up from 2,400 to 3,200 during that period".

Given the statistics published by The Urban Institute, gathered from The National Center for Education Statistics, we can notice a high probability that, in addition to the Mayor taking charge of the school system, as well longer school hours, the high influx of whites and educated residents into the District skew the meaning of positive test results. Additionally, we must note that while overall Proficiency Rates improved, those of Latino, Black, and minority students declined. Can we come, then, to the conclusion that what is true of the whole is not true of its parts? Meaning, does this overall improvement in the district's test scores fail to account for struggling minorities?  

Juan Sebastian Roa
Head of Communications and Marketing