The New York State Department of Education just released the May 2011 test results for math and English and the results aren't great. The average English scores have dipped from last year while math remained about the same. Last year the state upped the proficiency requirements, making the tests more difficult.

"While the majority of students statewide met or exceeded the state’s proficiency standards in both math and ELA, overall performance remains low and the gaps in achievement persist," the department said in a released.

52.8 percent of grade 3-8 students across the state met or exceeded the English proficiency standard, down from 53.2 percent. last year. 63.3 percent met or exceeded the standard in math, up from 61 percent last year.

The mayor is scheduled to release the city's results later today, but there are clues in the statewide numbers that indicate less-than-stellar results, especially among non-white populations. Only 35 percent of black students across grades 3-8 met the English proficiency standard, compared to 64.2 percent for white students. That 30-point gap was also present in math, where only 44 percent met or exceeded the standard in math. The numbers weren't much better for Latino students--37.3 percent for English, 50.2 percent on math.

There was good news for New York City, which saw both math and English scores rise from last year: 43.9 percent for English--up 1.5 points--and 57.3 percent on math, an increase of 3.3 percent overall.