Latest NCLB data bouys Utah

Glendale Middle School students feel 10 feet tall. Teachers are celebrating. Even the principal gets choked up talking about it:

The inner-city Salt Lake school, where 95 percent of students are poor and more than half are still learning English, cleared No Child Left Behind's achievement hurdle this year.

Math gains are the school's highlight: In spring 2004, 56 percent of the teens were testing as proficient in that subject. A year later, 80 percent hit the mark.

"I have got probably the most hard-working, dedicated people working their hearts out every day," principal Ernie Nix said. "The teachers gave kids a goal and told the kids they could do it."

No Child Left Behind progress reports were issued Thursday for every school in the state.

And Utah is looking good.

Last year, 84 percent of Beehive State schools cleared the bar.

This year, that number jumped to 87 percent.

School leaders say the boost is all the more impressive considering Utah raised its achievement expectations this year.

But is it really?

No question, many schools have been investing in research-based strategies, teaching coaches and extra testing tools, and zeroing in on students who need the help.

But No Child Left Behind reports also can be misleading. They don't mean, for instance, acceptable numbers of students are on grade level in reading and math. Nor do they mean all students are clearing the now higher bar.

They mostly show academic achievement is rising.

And that, many say, is great news.

"The best news on it is . . . the kids most at-risk are improving," said Brenda Hales, executive director of curriculum and instruction in Jordan School District. "I think it's nice to see positive direction. But I'm still not sure how much of that positive direction is due to change in the cut (or passing) scores in the CRTs, (state core curriculum tests) and how much of it is due to progress."

No Child Left Behind aims to shine a spotlight on school weaknesses, pressuring them to focus on groups of students who historically fall behind. The law requires all public schoolchildren, regardless of race, disability, income or English attainment, to read and do math well by 2014.