Are All America’s Children Really Above Average?

Through a recent report by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, we saw how important it is that children be strong readers by the fourth-grade.  Voices is now proud to release a complimentary report that compares national and state reading tests to come to an interesting conclusion:  According to the states, all America’s children are above average.

Of course, this might be possible in Lake Wobegon, but not in real life.  Actually, only about a third of fourth-graders score as proficient readers by national standards.  But our analysis found that almost all state reading tests show most of that state’s students as succeeding.  This confusion makes an honest discussion of educational standards difficult, and removes the incentive for policy-makers to reform education.

A summary of our findings, as well as detailed state-by-state comparisons, is available at our Voices school success page.