Oregon math, reading achievement among the nation’s worst, new scores show – oregonlive.com:
Only New Mexico, Alabama, West Virginia and Delaware posted eighth grade reading scores significantly below Oregon’s.
…Charlene Williams, Oregon’s state schools chief, acknowledged the disappointing results Tuesday and said the state will try to address the disparities by “doubling down on efforts that we know from research help move the needle.” She cited spending on programs designed to keep ninth graders on track for graduation, summer school and curriculum updates as examples.
Keep in mind that graduation rates now are a useless metric of achievement. They don’t even count as a certificate of attendance.
But even among Western states, Oregon stands out for its poor performance. Students in Washington and Idaho posted better scores at both grade levels in both subjects than their Oregon counterparts.
The Oregon Department of Education and the Democrat-controlled state government deserve a lot of the credit here.