The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) found that the average math score for 13-year-olds was the lowest in decades.
“The mathematics decline for 13-year-olds was the single largest decline we have observed in the past half a century,” said National Center for Education Statistics Commissioner Peggy G. Carr in a press release.
“The mathematics score for the lowest-performing students has returned to levels last seen in the 1970s, and the reading score for our lowest-performing students was actually lower than it was the very first year these data were collected, in 1971,” Carr continued.
For the 2022-2023 school year, students scored an average of 256 out of 500 in reading scores and 271 out of 500 in math scores.
According to Carr, part of the problem is the lack of good reading habits.
Carr explained, “Aside from its academic effects, reading opens the mind and the heart to new ways of seeing and thinking about the world. Many of our young people will never discover latent passions or areas of interest without reading broadly on their own time.”
Reporting from The Post Millennial:
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), said in a press release, “Students are entering high school who cannot read. This is intolerable. Parents should have the power to place their child in a school which is most likely to address the child’s educational needs. These scores make the case for school choice better than any other argument.”
