GAO Revises Estimates of Students Excluded From NAEP

Federal auditors last week dramatically revised their estimates of how many students with disabilities were excluded from taking national reading tests in 2002.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office, in a July report, said that states on average excused 5 percent of students with disabilities from taking the 2002 National Assessment of Educational Progress tests in reading. But last week, in a letter posted on its Web site, the GAO said the average was closer to 40 percent.

The change stems from crossed signals between the GAO, which is the auditing arm of Congress, and the U.S. Department of Education, which reports...