Standardized test scores on rise in local Md. counties

Students in suburban Maryland improved their scores on statewide standardized test scores used to gauge progress under No Child Left Behind, according to results released today by the Maryland Department of Education.

In Montgomery County, 86 percent of third-graders scored at or above proficiency in math and reading, up from 80 percent in math and 78 percent in reading in 2004, and up about two percentage points from last year.