Oregon Public Broadcasting

A new review of standardized test scores has tracked how Hispanic students in Oregon do compared with their peers. April Baer has the story.

The report is an extension of earlier studies into the black-white achievement gap.

John Tapogna of ECONorthwest compiled data from just about every test in reading, math, writing and science from 2003 to 2008.

Results show Latino students don't learn more slowly than their white classmates, but they do frequently arrive at school with a lower level of academic skills.

Tapogna says it's like a 3-second delay starting in a footrace. 

John Tapogna  "Their learning gains are comparable, but they start behind, and stay behind over time."

The study also shows that Latino students fully proficient in English do well. They're only two to three percentage points behind English speaking whites in test scores.

Tapogna says the results are a strong argument for educational intervention for kids from pre-kindergarten age through third grade. The study was funded by the non-profit Chalkboard project.