Reading Scores

Re “Set High Goals for Reading,” editorial, Jan. 19: The reason why more students score above grade level on reading tests in Texas than in California has little to do with high standards or accountability. Each state uses a different test, with different determinations of grade level. In California, grade level means scoring above the 50th percentile, which by definition half of all children will fail to do. In Texas, grade level means scoring above a certain arbitrarily determined cut-off score, which is set low enough so that nearly everyone passes. Comparing the two states on different tests is truly comparing apples and oranges.

When compared on the same test, with the same cut-off scores, students of similar backgrounds in Texas score in the same range as those in California. For example, on the 1992 National Assessment of Educational Progress, 59% of California students whose parents had graduated from high school scored below a basic level in reading. In Texas, that same percentage was only slightly lower, at 52%. Even this difference can easily be explained by the funding disparities between the two states in terms of reading materials: Texas outspends California on school library books and librarians. More books means more reading, and more reading leads to higher test scores.

JEFF McQUILLAN PhD

Assistant Professor of Education

Cal State Fullerton