What does this measure?

The percent of students of various racial and ethnic groups who scored at level 3 or above—meeting or exceeding the state standard—on the New York State Grade 4 Math exam. The test is scored by placing a student’s performance in one of four levels.

Why is this important?

Early development of mathematics concepts provides the basis for mastery of problem solving and computation skills.

How is the Greater Capital Region performing?

In 2007, passing rates were lower among black and Hispanic students than among white students across all counties for which data were available. Roughly 80-90% of white fourth-graders in the Greater Capital Region achieved a score of 3 or 4, compared to about two-thirds of Hispanic students and as low as 51% of black students (depending on the county). However, passing rates for black and Hispanic students have been rising in all local counties for which data were available. The greatest increase was among black students in Saratoga County, where the rate doubled between 2002 and 2007 to 81%.

Notes about the data

The tests were revised for the 2006 administration as the federal No Child Left Behind requirement to test all children in 3rd through 8th grades took effect. Therefore, results prior to 2006 are not comparable to 2006 and later. Results for racial and ethnic groups could not be tallied for the region as a whole because the data were incomplete. Test results for small racial groups in some counties were not disclosed.