A new Kingsbury Center analysis of the way achievement gaps are calculated reveals the potential for distorted perception of how different groups of students are really doing. The report “Achievement Gaps and the Proficiency Trap” uses data from NWEA’s MAP assessments to look at achievement gaps in different states, illustrating the variety of ways the data could be interpreted by using different measures or different state standards. The report also suggests new ways to look at data that will provide a better measure of the difference in performance between two types of students.