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Youth Indicators 1996 / Indicator 33, Chart 1


Indicator 33. Reading Proficiency


Reading proficiency of 9- and 17-year-olds, by race/ethnicity: 1971 to 1992

Chart for Indicator 33

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.

Average reading performance for 9-year-olds was about the same in 1992 as it was in 1971. However, the performance of 13- and 17-year-olds improved slightly. Hispanic and black 17-year-olds were reading significantly better in 1992 than in 1980. Although there is still a performance gap between white and black students, the gap narrowed between 1971 and 1988. However, since 1988, the gap widened again for 13- and 17-year-olds.


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