MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – According to a national report card released Tuesday, fourth-graders from Miami-Dade County public schools top the charts across the nation.
The report by the National Assessment of Educational Progress, administered by the United States Department of Education, included voluntary participation from 27 urban districts across the United States.
Among the Miami-Dade highlights, Miami-Dade County public school fourth-grade students ranked No. 1 in math and reading. Nearly 90 percent of all Miami-Dade fourth-graders scored above NAEP's basic level.
"These results are impressive at all levels," Miami-Dade Public Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvahlo said.
Miami-Dade public school eighth-graders ranked No. 2 and No. 6, respectively, in reading and math.
Statewide, Florida's black, Hispanic, ESOL students or those who have a disability outperform their peers nationally.
The Florida Department of Education noted in a statement that there is room for improvement across the state, including increasing teacher pay.
"Our students in poverty perform better than students in poverty across the country and in large cities," Carvahlo added.