NEWS RELEASE For Immediate Release: December 7, 2011 DALLAS ISD STUDENTS SCORE ABOVE NATIONAL AND LARGE

CITY AVERAGES BY ETHNICITY ON MATH PORTION OF NATIONS REPORT CARD First assessment of district by National Assessment of Educational Progress shows how district compares DALLAS-A representative sample of Dallas ISD students outscored similar students in every ethnicity nationally and in large city school districts on both the 4th grade and 8th grade mathematics assessment measured by the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as The Nations Report Card. The results are from the spring 2011 administration of the test in both grades, the first time that Dallas ISD has participated in the test. A representative sampling of Dallas ISD Hispanic, African-American and Anglo students, as well as English Language Learner students, each scored higher than similar students nationally as well as compared to other large urban school districts in Mathematics. While overall performance indicates that Dallas ISD is at about the national average in mathematics and below average in reading, the results can be misleading. Dallas ISD Interim Superintendent Alan King cautioned against using the overall results to make comparisons between districts. The demographic makeup of urban districts varies significantly from city to city, said King. To look at these results honestly, a deeper dive into the data is necessary. Dallas has a higher

percentage of students (up to 92%) who qualify for free and reduced price lunches than the vast majority of urban school districts in the sample. We also have the highest percentage of students considered ELL students (English Language Learners). Both of those factors are significant so the most accurate way to view the results is by comparing how each ethnic group, as well as English Language Learners and students who qualify for the National School Lunch Program, performed against its peers, both in other large city school districts and throughout the country. Dallas, Albuquerque and Hillsborough County Schools (Tampa/St. Petersburg) were added this year to the Trial Urban District Assessment (TUDA) by the rigorous National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). This year, 21 urban school districts, including New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Houston and Austin participated in TUDA, which measured performance in reading and mathematics in both the 4th and 8th grade. NAEP is known as The Nation's Report Card because it is the only nationally representative assessment of what U.S. students know and can do in core subjects like mathematics, reading, science and writing. It reports on student achievement at the national and state levels, and selected urban districts. The Dallas Independent School District and its leadership deserve special praise for stepping up to assess the achievement of their students and comparing it not only to the state but to the nation and other big cities across the country, said Michael Casserly, Executive Director of the Council of Great City Schools. Dallas results are particularly encouraging among English language learners in both subjects and among free and

reduced lunch eligible students in mathematics, and the data provide a solid foundation for the reforms ahead. Dallas ISD was selected because it met various characteristics, such as district size, minority concentrations, socioeconomic conditions and percentages of students with disabilities and English language learners. A primary goal of the Trial Urban District Assessment is to promote education reform in the schools of the nation's largest urban school districts and to focus attention on the specific challenges associated with urban education, according to the National Assessment Governing Board. A representative sampling of Dallas 4th and 8th students, ranging from 1,300 to 1,700 in each grade, out of approximately 13,000 students (4th grade) and 10,000 students (8th grade) were tested. The tests were administered in the spring of 2011. On the 4th grade administration of the mathematics test, Dallas ISD students posted the following scores compared to their peers nationwide: 4th Grade Mathematics Hispanic African American Anglo English Language Learners Students who qualify for Free/Reduced lunch

Dallas

Large City Average

National Average

234 (8th among TUDA districts) 225 (7th among TUDA districts) 258 (7th among TUDA districts) 231 (3rd among TUDA districts) 231 (6th among TUDA districts)

228 222 251 219 227

229 224 249 219 229

On the 8th grade administration of the mathematics test, Dallas ISD students posted the following scores compared to their peers nationwide:

8th Grade Mathematics Hispanic African American Anglo English Language Learners Students who qualify for Free/Reduced lunch

Dallas

Large City Average

National Average

276 (3rd among TUDA districts) 264 (5th among TUDA districts) 306 (5th among TUDA districts) 256 (2nd among TUDA districts) 272 (3rd among TUDA districts)

267 261 295 240 266

270 262 293 244 269

Hispanic, African American and students considered English language learners (ELL) scored particularly high on the 8th grade mathematics test compared with their peers. Dallas ISD Hispanic 8th graders scored 3rd highest of the 21 urban districts in the study, while Dallas ISD African American students ranked 5th among urban school districts nationally. Dallas ELL students had the second highest scores of the other urban districts in the study. Those results are all the more significant when considering that Dallas ISD tested a significantly higher number of ELL students than all urban districts and as a percentage of students in both 4th and 8th grade mathematics.

Dallas ISDs English language learner average in mathematics is a full 12 points above the national and large city average on the 4th grade test and 16 points higher than the large city average and 12 points above the national average on the 8th grade test. Dallas ELL average scores were ranked third among all urban districts in 4th grade mathematics. Dallas ISD, along with our peer districts in Austin and Houston, is at the top of the list in mathematics performance by ELL students, said King. To see that on a national report card is a credit to the work in education reform in Texas but we know there is still room to grow. Similar results, though not as large, were seen among students who qualify for free and reduced price lunch meals. Dallas ISD fourth and 8th grade students who qualify for the federal free lunch program scored higher on both mathematics tests than their peers both nationally and in large city school districts. Dallas 4th grade students who qualify for the National School Lunch Program, which make up 92% of the districts student population, ranked 6th among urban school districts, while Dallas ISDs 8th grade students who qualify for free or reduced price lunch (85% of students in the 8th grade) ranked 3rd among urban school districts in the study. The reading portion of the NAEP assessment shows Dallas ISD slightly above, holding steady and slightly below its peers by ethnicity and among English language learners. Below is a listing of 4th grade reading results:

4th Grade Reading Hispanic

Dallas 200

Large City Average 203

National Average 205

African American Anglo English Language Learners Students who qualify for Free/Reduced lunch

204 237 192 201

202 232 187 204

205 230 188 207

Below is a listing of 8th grade reading results: 8th Grade Reading Hispanic African American Anglo English Language Learners Students who qualify for Free/Reduced lunch Dallas 246 244 276 223 245 Large City Average 249 245 273 220 248 National Average 251 248 272 223 251

As part of the 2011, eighth grade reading assessment, students were asked how often they read for fun on their own time. 36 percent of Dallas 8th graders said never or hardly ever, while only 9 percent, the lowest of the 21 large city school districts, said every day. King said the report should be a wake-up call to the Dallas community. The results in this report are starkly different than TAKS, said King. While our students have shown improvement each year on the reading portion of the TAKS test, this set of tests, indicates that much more work needs to be doneand it will. Reading initiatives such as Dallas Reads, Partners in Reading, Earning by Learning as well as the recent 11-11-11 read-in, should have a renewed emphasis, especially at the secondary level.

Additional information on Dallas ISDs performance on the Nations Report Card is available online at www.dallasisd.org -30-

Dallas ISD has added nearly $100 million to its fund balance during the last two school years.