Summary of NAEP 2024 Results
The latest National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) results for 2024 show that 4th and 8th graders continue to struggle in math and reading, with little to no progress in recovering pre-pandemic performance levels.
Reading scores declined further, dropping 5 points since 2019 and 2 points since 2022 for both grades.
- Math scores fell 3 points for 4th graders and 8 points for 8th graders between 2019 and 2024.
- Small progress was seen in 4th-grade math, where scores increased by 2 points since 2022, but 8th-grade math showed no improvement.
- State-level performance:
- Reading: Only Louisiana improved in 4th grade reading; 38 states saw declines. No states improved in 8th-grade reading.
- Math: Only Alabama improved in 4th-grade math, while 8th-grade math scores fell in 49 states.
Key Takeaways
- Lower-performing students struggle the most, especially in reading.
- Student absenteeism is strongly linked to poor performance, with absent students showing the lowest scores.
- Federal COVID-19 relief funds ($190B) have ended, raising concerns about their impact on learning recovery.
- Concerns over education policy: Critics argue that education systems are focusing on ideological issues rather than improving academic outcomes.
- Calls for urgent action to support the lowest-performing students and raise learning standards.
The original article was written by Anna Merod and published on Jan 29, 2025, on K12dive.com. To read the full article, please click here.
