The latest nationwide assessment of how well schools are teaching shows a steady improvement in math scores since the early 1980s and a slight slip in students' knowledge of science in the late 1990s.

But an achievement gap persists between African-American 17-year-olds, who on average are still two years behind their white counterparts in their reading skills, according to a new trend report released as part of the government's 1999 National Assessment of Education Progress (NAEP).

"Encouraging trends in student achievement" were the words used by Gary W. Phillips, acting commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), to describe the NAEP findings which examined the academic performance of 9-, 13-, and 17-year olds. Data show that for mathematics, since 1973, students in all age groups assessed achieved consistent gains. These increases began in the 1980s and continued into the 1990s.

	The Science of Teaching Tech Elementary and secondary teachers learned how to use technology to enhance science instruction at a week-long summer institute hosted by LAEP's Target Science teacher network.

	Technology and Teaching A nine-week LAEP workshop series will provide technology training and support for new inner-city teachers who have emergency teaching permits and are working toward their teaching credential.

	English Emersion Successful in Oceanside Two years after Californians voted to end bilingual education, Oceanside schools have proved many skeptics wrong who predicted dire consequenses.

	Search LAEP advanced search