The 2011 National Assessment of Educational Progress or NAEP shows that Wyoming eighth graders continue to outperform the national average test score in science.
The Wyoming Department of Education says that Wyoming students also increased their science scores from those reported in 2009.
State Superintendent Cindy Hill says there was a lot to like in these latest results, including the fact that female students improved their scores and that only five states scored higher than Wyoming. But Hill is also pleased that the gap in test scores between high and low income students was very small.
“We know our gap is actually one of the smallest gaps in the United States, the gap between our highest and our lowest performers and we feel very good about that.”
But Hill would also like to see higher performers do even better. The Superintendent adds that local school districts have done a great job in getting most students to improve and she says that should be celebrated. Math and Reading results were announced last fall.