Student Outcomes

State assessments — annual exams used to measure students’ academic readiness and proficiency — are under increased scrutiny, with some even calling for their elimination altogether. While assessments in New York State and elsewhere are far from perfect, these measures remain the only objective, comparable, and consistent statewide data to help show what our students know, where they are falling behind, and who needs more support.

State assessments in grades 3 through 8, which are required under the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), provide objective metrics that can be used to identify disparities and target resources to students, schools, and districts most in need. This is why nearly every civil rights organization in the nation supported annual assessments during the development of ESSA. 

Our Equity-Centered Approach

Through a data-driven approach, we disaggregate assessment results by race, income, and geographic regions to produce public data that reveals where equity gaps lie between student subgroups. This data further supports our advocacy efforts to eliminate gaps in equity and opportunity that hold too many students back from reaching their full potential. Moreover, we call on state leaders to ensure an expedited release of public data each year and to eliminate racial and cultural bias, while improving racial and cultural inclusivity in assessments so that they reflect the lived experiences of students of color across the state.

Latest Resource

Report: Warning Bells: The Growing Proficiency Crisis Among New York Students

Our analysis of the 2022-23 New York State Education Department (NYSED) assessments reveals troubling outcomes for New York’s students overall, and inequitable results for students from low-income backgrounds and students of color.

EdTrust-New York completed this analysis in May 2024 and shares recommendations for education leaders to raise student outcomes in math and English language arts in New York State, as well as improve assessments by eliminating racial and cultural biases; providing students with high-quality literacy and math curricula; increasing transparency and timeliness around the release of assessment data; and more.

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Featured Reports and Resources Over the Years

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Statement: NAEP Data Reveals Crisis with Persistent Gaps for Black and Latinx Students

Except for fourth grade math, New York’s NAEP scores in reading and math have stagnated or declined over the past 25 years. These results make it clear that current approaches, especially in middle grades, are failing students. We cannot continue with the same strategies and expect different outcomes.
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Statement: Preliminary 2023-24 Statewide Assessment Results

The recent release of preliminary 2023-24 statewide assessment results represent a small step forward for public transparency but a step backward for student outcomes.

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Report: Pandemic Proficiency

This data provides the public with an important snapshot of the impact of the pandemic on student literacy and numeracy skills and allows districts to drive resources and support to the students who most need them.

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Statement: 2022-23 New York State Assessment Results

We urge the New York State Department of Education to release state assessment results in a timelier and more transparent manner. Releasing this important statewide data over six months after the tests have been administered dilutes the value of assessments, making it difficult for schools to use the data to inform instruction and target resources to students most in need of support.

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Data Snapshot

Less than

%

of Native American and 30% of Black and Latinx eighth graders were deemed proficient on the eighth grade math assessment in their 2022-23 school year.

*EdTrust-New York Report, 2024

Only

%

fourth grade students scored Below Basic in reading, with 55% of Black students and 51% of Latinx students scoring Below Basic.

*National Assessment of Educational Progress, 2024

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