Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools officials expressed concern Tuesday about black-white achievement gaps and a significant drop in the number of schools meeting progress standards under the federal No Child Left Behind Act. A preliminary count by the state found that 36 of 158 CMS schools tested met the standard, called “adequate yearly progress,” in 2007-08. A year earlier, 61 schools did. Superintendent Peter Gorman attributed the decline to ever-rising standards demanded by federal law, which aims to have all students proficient in math and reading by 2014. While some test scores are rising in CMS, “it's not going up at a fast enough rate,” Gorman told school board members. “The standards will get harder and harder.” To make adequate progress, schools must meet multiple pass-rate targets, including those for various racial groups, students with disabilities, low-income students, and students with limited English proficiency. The targets vary from school to school, depending on diversity levels. N.C. officials are raising their benchmarks every three years in hopes of gradually meeting the federal goal. The decline in the number of CMS schools making their targets coincides with higher standards taking hold this year. For instance, math targets this year in grades 3-8 rose from 65.8 percent of students scoring well to 77.2 percent. Schools that fail to show enough students scoring “proficient” or above on state tests can be forced t ...
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