New Mexico test scores lowest in some Native American areas

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) – Small New Mexico school districts with large Native American populations have some of the lowest percentages of students testing proficient or better on new standardized tests.

A review of state data by The Associated Press found that Dulce Independent Schools, which serves students from the Jicarilla Apache Reservation, had no students score proficient of better in fourth-grade reading or in fourth-, seventh-, and eighth-grade math.

Meanwhile, Jemez Valley Public Schools had not fifth-graders test proficient or better in reading or math.

Around a quarter of New Mexico students in grade 3 to 8 met proficiency or better benchmarks for reading and writing on standardized tests given last year to measure rigorous Common Core standards.

Less than 10 percent of the state’s 8th graders met expectations or better in math.