Nation's Report Card: High school math and reading scores hit record lows; eighth-grade science backslides
NAEP results from tests administered Jan–Mar 2024 show multi-decade declines that began before the pandemic; Education Department officials urge action as federal offices face budget cuts.
The National Assessment of Educational Progress released results Tuesday showing record-low scores for 12th-graders in math and reading and a decline in eighth-grade science that erased gains made since 2009.
The tests, administered between January and March 2024, found that nearly 45% of high school seniors scored "below basic" in math — the highest share since the current version of the assessment was introduced — and almost one-third scored below basic in reading, also a record. The lowest-performing students posted an average math score of 224, 25 points lower than peers in 1992.
Officials and analysts noted that the downward trend predates the COVID-19 pandemic and has continued for more than a decade. The Washington Post reported that declines began before pandemic-related school disruptions and persisted through the latest testing cycle.
Matthew Soldner, acting director of the Institute of Education Sciences, the research arm of the Department of Education that oversees the NAEP, said the results should prompt urgent action. "Scores for our lowest-performing students are at historic lows, continuing declines that began more than a decade ago," he said, adding that previous agency leaders had warned of similar trends. "These results should galvanize all of us to take concerted, focused action to accelerate student learning."
Education Secretary Linda McMahon described the results as confirmation of a "devastating trend" and endorsed the characterization of the situation as a national emergency in interviews following the release. "We are spending a ton of money on education. We've spent $3 trillion since the Department of Education was established, only to see scores continuing to decline," McMahon said, arguing that federal funds should be redirected to states.
The Trump administration has proposed policies that would give states more discretion in the use of federal education dollars while seeking overall reductions in some K-12 program spending. McMahon and administration officials said reallocating funds to state-level priorities would better target resources, but they offered no immediate, detailed federal plan in response to the NAEP findings.
The NAEP also reported that eighth-grade science scores fell below 2019 levels, erasing gains recorded since the science assessment began in 2009. Education researchers have pointed to a range of potential contributors to declines in academic performance over time, including changes in curriculum and instruction, variable student preparedness, socioeconomic factors, and the uneven recovery from pandemic-era disruptions.
The National Center for Education Statistics, which administers the NAEP, experienced staff reductions and canceled contracts earlier in the year as the Department of Government Efficiency enacted spending cuts within the Education Department. Officials said those actions did not prevent analysis and reporting of the 2024 NAEP results. Soldner told reporters that despite the reductions, the office maintained its capacity to analyze and publish the data.
Critics and education advocates responded to the NAEP release by urging targeted interventions such as expanded tutoring, improved teacher training, and curriculum adjustments tied to evidence-based literacy and numeracy instruction. Some state education leaders have already moved to revise standards or to implement focused recovery programs, while others signaled plans to review the new data closely before proposing policy changes.
The NAEP, often called the "Nation's Report Card," samples students across the country to provide a recurring national snapshot of achievement in reading, mathematics and other subjects. Because it is not tied to classroom grades or statewide accountability systems, educators and policymakers use NAEP trends to assess long-term changes in student performance and to compare progress across states and demographic groups.
The release of the 2024 results is likely to intensify debates over federal and state roles in education funding and policy, and over strategies to reverse long-term declines in student achievement. Education officials said the data will be used to guide discussions on scaling interventions and directing resources, while researchers stressed the need for sustained, evidence-based approaches to support the lowest-performing students.
The NAEP release offers a fresh benchmark for educators and policymakers as they assess recovery efforts and craft strategies aimed at improving student outcomes. The Education Department said it will continue to analyze subgroup and state-level results and that additional reports and briefings will follow to inform federal and state responses.