Report Roundup

Reading Scores Surge at Small N.Y.C. Schools: An analysis of test scores in a network of small schools in New York City has found a one-year jump of 5 percentage points in the proportion of students reading at or above grade level.

The study, made public this month, focused on schools involved in the New York Networks for School Renewal, a coalition of four groups that support the formation of small schools. The coalition received a $25 million, five-year grant in 1995 from the Annenberg Foundation, which is providing $500 million for school reform in urban and rural districts around the country.

Comparing standardized-test scores for the same students from 1996 and 1997, the study found that the percentage of pupils in grades 3-8 reading at or above national norms climbed from 36 percent to 41 percent in 80 small schools. The networks now include...