Youth Indicators 1996 / Indicator 35, Chart 1

Indicator 35. Mathematics Proficiency

Mathematics proficiency of 9- and 17-year-olds, by race/ethnicity: 1978 to 1992

NOTE: NAEP scores range from 0 to 500.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress, NAEP 1992 Trends in Academic Progress.

At all three ages, students' average mathematics proficiency was significantly higher in 1992 than in 1978. At all three ages, white students in 1992 continued to have a higher average mathematics proficiency than black and Hispanic students. In 1992, the average mathematics proficiency of males remained slightly higher than that of females at age 17. Students at ages 13 and 17 who spent 2 hours or less watching television each day had higher scores than those who spent more time watching television.