The Center on Education Policy, a Washington think tank that's become the leading non-partisan analyst on all matters No Child Left Behind, issued a report yesterday that's bound to make Bush administration officials smile. Called "Has Student Achievement Increased Since 2002?: State Test Score Trends Through 2006-07," the report analyzed state test data as well as the results of the only standardized test administered nationwide, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (called NAEP). And it concluded that, yes, for the nation as a whole, test scores are up and achievement gaps have narrowed since the federal law was enacted, though there's still a long way to go.

In Maryland, the report found that the percentage of students passing the standardized tests grew at a "moderate to large rate" in reading and math in nearly every grade level analyzed. The exception was high school math, where -- the report says -- too few years of data were available to determine a trend. 

The gap between the performance of Maryland's African-American and white students narrowed in every grade analyzed in reading. In math, that gap narrowed in elementary school but widened in middle school.

A variety of interest groups quickly issued statements reacting to the study's findings. The Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, criticized the study for not taking into account the results of the international tests known as PISA and PIRLS, which show the performance of American students declining in every grade and subject since the passage of No Child Left Behind. Meanwhile, the nation's largest teachers union, the National Education Association, said the study was proof that American educators are making an impact in spite of NCLB.