Photo by NCinDC

As D.C. officials continue trying to turn around the city’s public school system, they had some good news to share yesterday—the annual Comprehensive Assessment System found that public school students saw increases in math and science, though gains in reading remained flat.

Compared to 2011 scores, students posted a 2.8 percent gain in math, 5.3 percent in science and 0.5 percent in reading. Though reading scores went up only marginally, school officials were careful to stress that they marked the first increase in two years. Additionally, the Office of the State Superintendent for Education noted that scores have generally increased since 2007, moving up 18.1 percent in math and 9.5 percent in reading.

Smaller gains were seen at the city’s public charter schools—which have been growing in size and scope faster than public schools—though performance has generally been higher. While only 46 percent of DCPS students now rank “proficient” in math, 55 percent of charter school students do. (For reading it stands at 43.5 percent for DCPS and 49.4 percent for charter schools.)

“I’m very proud of, and excited about, the growth we saw this year, on the whole. I’m encouraged by the five-year progress that our students have made, but I also know that we have to move further and faster,” said DCPS Chancellor Kaya Henderson in a statement. “These scores present an opportunity for all our schools to replicate success where we can and make real changes where we need improvement.”

Interestingly, the biggest gains across the board were found in third- and fourth-grade students that participated in pre-K programs. But even there, the ongoing racial disparities are evident—according to the numbers, white students are far above the state average for proficiency, while Hispanic students are just above it and African American students are below it.

Regardless of the advances in test scores, D.C. schools have their work cut for them—by 2017 they hope that 73 percent of public school students are proficient in reading and 74 percent in math.
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