There is widespread concern that U.S. students entering college do not have the educational foundation to succeed in introductory science courses. Mathematics is of particular interest because proficiency in mathematics may predict performance in introductory college science courses. In the United States, numerous educational reforms focus on the accountability of schools for proficiency (mainly in mathematics and English Language Arts). However, agreement on proficiency goals that accurately reflect the needs of a diverse student population has been problematic.

We collected data available through the California Department of Education's accountability progress reporting system and extracted the following data for all students and numerically significant subgroups within elementary schools: the number of students tested and the percentage of students scoring proficient or advanced for both the mathematics and ELA test. We employed linear, polynomial, and logistic models to make comparisons with state and federal growth targets for students scoring proficient or advanced within schools.