Utah scores below average in three of four major areas tracked in the "Quality Counts 2006" report released Wednesday by the magazine Education Week, although the state fares well in certain key areas.

"Quality Counts" explores the relationship between educational policy and gains in student achievement on state and national levels over the past 10 years. Overall, it finds that state efforts to devise standards, tests, and accountability systems in education relate positively with national gains on reading and math tests in grades 4 and 8 from 1996 to 2005.

Among the report's major areas of focus, Utah's best showing is a B-plus in resource equity, earned because poorer districts in the state often have higher per-pupil funding levels than wealthier districts - a pattern found in only 10 states. This occurs in Utah because schools get much of their funding from state income tax instead of relying mainly on property taxes that favor wealthier areas. Also, Utah indexes the amount of money it awards to schools for each student. Special-education students get more money, for example; half-day kindergartners get less.

"The money goes where it is needed," said Mark Peterson, director of public relations for the Utah Office of Education.

The news is less encouraging in other areas. Though Utah earns high marks for its stringent academic standards, it gets a C-plus in the area of standards and accountability. That's because the state's tests rely on multiple-choice items, and because Utah does not sanction all of its low-performing schools nor reward its high-performing schools.

"We plead guilty on multiple-choice testing," Peterson said. "It's the most cost-efficient way of grading tests, and we are resource-starved."

Sanctions and rewards tied to school performance are being developed as part of the state's U-PASS program.

"We do expect that portion of the grade to come up," Peterson said.

Utah earned a C in the area of school climate - below the national average of C-plus. Though the state does well on indicators of school choice, class size, and facilities, it loses points for school size and student engagement.

Utah's open enrollment policy and plethora of charter schools give students more choice than in most areas of the nation, but huge schools - some high schools have more than 2,000 students - hurt the state's educational climate, the report says.

Utah's lowest grade, a C-minus, is for improving teacher quality. Utah is one of only three states that didn't require aspiring teachers to pass written tests in their subject areas, according to the Quality Counts report.

Not anymore, says Ray Timothy, associate state super- intendant.

"New teachers now have to pass rigorous content area tests in their preparatory programs, so that when they come out with a diploma they meet the highly qualified definition," Timothy said. The policy was instituted last July.

There is heartening news for Utah in the report's finer print. Utah and Delaware were the only two states that closed achievement gaps between advantaged and disadvantaged students in grade-eight reading achievement. And, Utah's achievement gap between poor students (those receiving free or reduced-cost lunch) and others is the second-smallest in the nation. Utah's graduation rate also ranks as one of the nation's highest.

Much of the data for the report come from National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), a standardized test given to samples of students throughout the United States. Utah students score 26th in the nation on NAEP.