Maybe a partial explanation, from one of the links, comparing red and blue states between 2020 and 2024: “The differential extent of school closures during the pandemic is the most likely explanation for the differential achievement trends across states.”
I did a project to help enable the return to phonics as a proven method for learning how to read. The more I learned about the historical trend towards whole language learning versus traditional phonics, and the mindless adoption by progressive school districts of whole language learning methods, the more amazed I became at the absolute lack of evidence and proof that whole language works, and in fact evidence suggests that phonics is what works. I really struggle with the absolute lack of evidence-based thinking in the public school system.
"As just one example, Mississippi’s eighth grade reading results are not as impressive as its fourth grade outcomes."
That's not "just one example".
That's the ball game. Mississippi has been doing this for over a decade, and there's not much bump in 8th grade. Just like NAEP score increases in 4th grade never led to 12th grade improvements, it's pretty clear that getting all worked up about 4th grade phonics doesn't matter much to building 8th grade vocabularies.
At the end of the day, it's cognitive ability, not instruction method, that wins the day in the long term.
You talk about "biases" while never mentioning race. Reformers are always using black and Hispanic scores to beat up public schools. The "case to be made" against Oregon and Vermont is that their white kids aren't doing well, but that would draw attention to the fact that their white kids are still far ahead of Mississippi's supposedly awesome improvements among black kids. That's why Oregon and Vermont get passes. Because once you acknowledge that white kids doing poorly still do much better than black kids doing well, the whole notion of "improving schools" becomes obviously a matter of who's got the best demographics.
But then, the public already knows this. All the reformer yap about improving schools never makes much dent in the public because they know better.
Average IQ tests say yes over and over and over. In the same way that Asian and Ashkenazi average IQs (and outcomes) are consistently higher than whites. Different peoples - due to the environments their ancestors evolved in - have different strengths and weaknesses.
That’s an argument for cultural and socioeconomic differences. The idea that the pigmentation of someone’s skin makes them inherently superior or inferior is both dumb and racist. Black Americans outperform Southern and Eastern Europeans on international assessments. Mixed race American who by your logic should be dumber than white people outperform Western Europe. White Americans outperform Korea and Hong Kong.
I'm sorry but you're incorrect. Asian students at poverty levels get much higher SAT scores (and have higher IQs) than black students whose parents got masters degrees. And you're comparing apples and oranges with higher SES American blacks testing against the poorest Europeans. Education levels differ by nation and this can greatly affect PISA tests. But IQ tests are less prone to such bias and here you see much greater consistency. There is no more replicable study in the social sciences than IQ by race. This is not "racist" but rather an acknowledgement of reality. Races are different and that's OK. We evolved for thousands of years under different environments that selected for different traits. I'm sorry you think that intelligence (an attribute no different than running speed or propensity to sunburn) makes someone more or less human than someone else. I assure you it does not.
You can’t draw conclusions from these particular numbers without further reading I think. A couple points that I would want to know more about:
1. Looking at the Urban Institute NAEP data (which I think is mostly what you’re writing about), the demographic adjustment to the scores is what makes Mississippi look good. Their raw scores are much lower, relatively (e.g. no longer better than WI). I would want to understand the model they use to make that adjustment.
2. Performance on one test or set of tests at one or two time points isn’t an important outcome in itself. I would want to know if there are improvements in important outcomes that should be attributed to the changes in educational policy.
Probably not the only questions — my point is this is a complicated system and the single summary statistic is not enough to motivate broad policy recommendations.
Over the years, state after state after state has reported miraculous improvements in their educational results based on standardized tests. Time after time, the results have proven to be because the states created conditions supporting one form or another of cheating on the tests. Bob Somerby has been beating this drum for literally 20 years.
How sure are we that this isn't what's happening in Missisippi?
Agree with this 1000% with one exception: NPR did some good reporting out of AL and LA in February. All media could/should do more to tell the national story and not just paint the success of each state as a one off, but the NPR reporting was very good.
I like the article, but can you explain *what* Mississippi is doing different?
Great question.
Maybe a partial explanation, from one of the links, comparing red and blue states between 2020 and 2024: “The differential extent of school closures during the pandemic is the most likely explanation for the differential achievement trends across states.”
I did a project to help enable the return to phonics as a proven method for learning how to read. The more I learned about the historical trend towards whole language learning versus traditional phonics, and the mindless adoption by progressive school districts of whole language learning methods, the more amazed I became at the absolute lack of evidence and proof that whole language works, and in fact evidence suggests that phonics is what works. I really struggle with the absolute lack of evidence-based thinking in the public school system.
This report opened my eyes. https://open.spotify.com/show/0tcUMXBFMGMe8w79MM5QCI?si=jTJIld87QBWjsaVNVcELow
I’m pretty left wing.
I learned to read by phonics by the time I was four. It works.
I added a link above to a podcast that's worth the time.
I learned a lot about this during my campaign for state rep. They called it Big Textbook and it was jaw dropping
"As just one example, Mississippi’s eighth grade reading results are not as impressive as its fourth grade outcomes."
That's not "just one example".
That's the ball game. Mississippi has been doing this for over a decade, and there's not much bump in 8th grade. Just like NAEP score increases in 4th grade never led to 12th grade improvements, it's pretty clear that getting all worked up about 4th grade phonics doesn't matter much to building 8th grade vocabularies.
At the end of the day, it's cognitive ability, not instruction method, that wins the day in the long term.
You talk about "biases" while never mentioning race. Reformers are always using black and Hispanic scores to beat up public schools. The "case to be made" against Oregon and Vermont is that their white kids aren't doing well, but that would draw attention to the fact that their white kids are still far ahead of Mississippi's supposedly awesome improvements among black kids. That's why Oregon and Vermont get passes. Because once you acknowledge that white kids doing poorly still do much better than black kids doing well, the whole notion of "improving schools" becomes obviously a matter of who's got the best demographics.
But then, the public already knows this. All the reformer yap about improving schools never makes much dent in the public because they know better.
Are you saying white people are just inherently smarter than black people?
Average IQ tests say yes over and over and over. In the same way that Asian and Ashkenazi average IQs (and outcomes) are consistently higher than whites. Different peoples - due to the environments their ancestors evolved in - have different strengths and weaknesses.
That’s an argument for cultural and socioeconomic differences. The idea that the pigmentation of someone’s skin makes them inherently superior or inferior is both dumb and racist. Black Americans outperform Southern and Eastern Europeans on international assessments. Mixed race American who by your logic should be dumber than white people outperform Western Europe. White Americans outperform Korea and Hong Kong.
I'm sorry but you're incorrect. Asian students at poverty levels get much higher SAT scores (and have higher IQs) than black students whose parents got masters degrees. And you're comparing apples and oranges with higher SES American blacks testing against the poorest Europeans. Education levels differ by nation and this can greatly affect PISA tests. But IQ tests are less prone to such bias and here you see much greater consistency. There is no more replicable study in the social sciences than IQ by race. This is not "racist" but rather an acknowledgement of reality. Races are different and that's OK. We evolved for thousands of years under different environments that selected for different traits. I'm sorry you think that intelligence (an attribute no different than running speed or propensity to sunburn) makes someone more or less human than someone else. I assure you it does not.
Need to qualify. There's some private ‘good’ ones. Maybe a couple of good public ones but Idoubt it. No info on home school
As a man from Mississippi, I am truly grateful! Thank you for the article.
You can’t draw conclusions from these particular numbers without further reading I think. A couple points that I would want to know more about:
1. Looking at the Urban Institute NAEP data (which I think is mostly what you’re writing about), the demographic adjustment to the scores is what makes Mississippi look good. Their raw scores are much lower, relatively (e.g. no longer better than WI). I would want to understand the model they use to make that adjustment.
2. Performance on one test or set of tests at one or two time points isn’t an important outcome in itself. I would want to know if there are improvements in important outcomes that should be attributed to the changes in educational policy.
Probably not the only questions — my point is this is a complicated system and the single summary statistic is not enough to motivate broad policy recommendations.
Over the years, state after state after state has reported miraculous improvements in their educational results based on standardized tests. Time after time, the results have proven to be because the states created conditions supporting one form or another of cheating on the tests. Bob Somerby has been beating this drum for literally 20 years.
How sure are we that this isn't what's happening in Missisippi?
Agree with this 1000% with one exception: NPR did some good reporting out of AL and LA in February. All media could/should do more to tell the national story and not just paint the success of each state as a one off, but the NPR reporting was very good.