Standardized testing isn’t the be-all and end-all of education. Still, the results of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), known as the Nation’s Report Card, show important educational trends. Unfortunately, today’s (Jan. 29) release of the latest results isn’t showing good trends, although results aren’t as bad as some predicted coming out of COVID-19.
But not as bad doesn’t mean good. In reading, results show the largest percentage of eighth graders scoring below NAEP Basic in the assessment’s history; for fourth graders, the percentage scoring below NAEP Basic was the largest in 20 years. Only around 30 percent of students in either grade performed at or above the NAEP Proficient level in reading.
Math results weren’t much better. While there was a slight uptick in scores, only 28 percent of eighth graders and 40 percent of fourth graders performed at or above NAEP Proficient.
While these overall numbers are concerning, digging deeper shows more troubling results. The gap between the highest- and lowest-performing students has continued to grow. In math, student scores in the top quartile improved while those in the bottom quartile fell for eighth grade and remained stagnant for fourth. In reading, both age groups had bigger drops for lower-performing students compared to the higher-performing students.
It’s worth noting that these worrying results come after billions of dollars in federal funding to schools that were specifically earmarked for efforts, such as tutoring, that were meant to address the learning interruptions during the pandemic. They say money can’t buy happiness; apparently, it can’t buy better test scores either.
The Nation’s Report Card is useful for taking a broad look at educational achievement throughout the country, including by state, district, school type, and various demographics. But it’s an aggregate measure. It doesn’t tell us about individual children and their educational needs. And it doesn’t offer solutions for how to ensure those needs can be met.
NAEP scores will receive lots of media attention in the coming days. Based on history, there’s no reason to think that attention will do much to improve the educational experience for kids. Sure, parents can look and see if their district or state improved across various metrics. But that information doesn’t equip them to choose other options for their children.
Parents need educational freedom more than they need NAEP scores. The spread of school choice programs that allow funding to follow students to a variety of educational options is helping parents choose where and how their children are educated. This is crucial considering test scores are just one of many things parents and children care about when it comes to education—and they tend to be pretty low on the priority list. School choice lets families factor in things that are more important to them, such as safety, values, and environment.
So, by all means, dig into the NAEP results and see where scores are improving, falling, or staying flat. But don’t forget that the bigger picture is really the smaller picture—the individual students who should have access to educational options beyond their assigned schools.