Focus on Math, Writing May Aid Other Learning

Fears that proficiency in science is decreasing among schools that emphasize math and writing may be unfounded, a new study shows.

Released today by the Manhattan Institute, the study, "Building on the Basics," examines Florida schools that between 2001 and 2003 participated in the A+ Achievement Program, which assigns schools a letter grade based on overall student performance on high-stakes achievement tests covering math and reading.

A Manhattan Institute senior fellow who was a co-author of the study, Marcus Winters, said researchers had concerns that student achievement in low-stakes, untested subjects — particularly science — would suffer as resources and time were diverted to tested subjects.

The findings, however, tell a different story: Schools that focused heavily on math and reading, but had little incentive to produce high scores in science, actually showed student improvement in math, reading, and science.

The report suggests that math and reading skills may actually help students to better understand other, unrelated subjects.

"The reason we're so focused on math and reading is that they're necessary to learn all the other subjects," Mr. Winters said. "It's a pretty hopeful story about where we've been going."

There are some caveats, however: Although Florida schools are popular with researchers because of the completeness of testing data, it is difficult to look at the whole nation, Mr. Winters said. Other low-stakes subjects that he suggested should be studied include social studies and the arts.