US Student Test Scores Continue Decade-Long Decline
National assessment data shows American students’ math and reading proficiency has fallen to levels not seen in decades, a trend that began before the COVID-19 pandemic and has since accelerated. The latest results from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) reveal significant drops in achievement across multiple grade levels, raising concerns among educators and policymakers about the long-term consequences for students and the nation’s workforce.
The discussion around falling test scores, reasons, and fixes has intensified, reflecting a broad public debate captured in various forums, including a recent opinion feature on rss.nytimes.com. The data indicates that the decline is not a simple post-pandemic anomaly but part of a more persistent slide.
National Assessment Reveals Steep Declines
Results from the NAEP, often called “The Nation’s Report Card,” paint a stark picture. For twelfth graders, 45% performed below the basic level in math, an increase of five percentage points since 2019. In reading, 32% of seniors were below the basic level. The average reading score for high school seniors was the lowest recorded since the assessment began in 1992.
The trend is also evident in younger grades. For eighth-graders, science scores are at their lowest since 2009, and a third of students are not reading at the NAEP Basic level, meaning they struggle to identify a text’s main idea or order of events. The declines are widespread, affecting students in nearly every state and across demographic groups, though some have been hit harder than others.
Pandemic’s Lingering Impact
While test scores were already trending downward before 2020, the pandemic significantly worsened the situation. Researchers from the Brookings Institution note that pandemic-induced disruptions had severe impacts on student test scores, with greater learning loss observed in math than in English.
Chronic absenteeism is a major contributing factor. In 2024-2025, 23% of students were frequently absent, a sharp increase from the pre-pandemic rate of about 15%. Thomas Kane, a professor at Harvard University, stated that academic recovery would have been “meaningfully larger” if student attendance had returned to previous levels.
Widening Achievement Gaps
A particularly troubling trend is the widening gap between the highest- and lowest-performing students. Recent NAEP results show that while high-performing students have largely held steady or made some gains since 2022, the scores for the lowest-performing students have continued to fall. This disparity exacerbates existing inequities in the education system.
For example, in eighth-grade math and reading, Hispanic students saw significant declines compared to 2022. In mathematics, the score gap between White and Black nine-year-old students widened from 25 points in 2020 to 33 points in 2022.
Debate Over Causes and Solutions
Experts point to a combination of factors for the decade-long slide. The decline began around 2013, coinciding with the easing of federal accountability measures and the explosion of social media use among teenagers. Educators are now re-evaluating everything from curriculum standards to the quality of classroom materials, including the best biology textbooks for SSCE exams and other core subjects.
The digital environment presents another challenge. Students have unfiltered access to a vast range of online materials, from study aids like lists of the best books to read for 2024 UTME to non-academic, esoteric texts such as FREE: Download The Sixth and Seventh Books of Moses PDF (196 Pages), which can divert focus from fundamental learning.
Federal and State Responses
In response to the crisis, the U.S. Department of Education has emphasized using federal funds, such as those from the American Rescue Plan, for evidence-based interventions. These include high-dosage tutoring, summer learning programs, and mental health support to address trauma from the pandemic.
At least 20% of the $122 billion in Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds allocated to districts was directed to address the impact of lost instructional time. However, with this federal assistance set to expire, there is concern that the country has made insufficient progress in remediating the learning loss.
What Happens Next
The ongoing decline in student achievement presents a long-term challenge. The National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), the federal agency that administers NAEP, will continue to monitor these trends, with the next results for long-term trends expected in June 2025.
Policymakers and educators face pressure to implement sustainable solutions that go beyond temporary funding. The focus is shifting toward systemic changes, including improved teacher training, curriculum reform, and strategies to re-engage students and families to combat chronic absenteeism. The effectiveness of these interventions will be critical in determining whether this generation of students can recover lost ground.