|
“The results show the profound toll on student learning during the pandemic, as the size and scope of the declines are the largest ever in mathematics,” said NCES Commissioner Peggy G. Carr.
Carr said, “The results also underscore the importance of instruction and the role of schools in both students’ academic growth and their overall wellbeing. It’s clear we all need to come together - policymakers and community leaders at every level - as partners in helping our educators, children, and families succeed.”
There were no improvements in mathematics in any state or large urban district, and eighth-grade mathematics scores declined in 51 participating states and jurisdictions since the assessment was last given in 2019, the year prior to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. Eighth-grade mathematics scores did not change in Utah or the U.S. Department of Defense Education Activity schools.
“Eighth grade is a pivotal moment in students’ mathematics education, as they develop key mathematics skills for further learning and potential careers in mathematics and science,” said Daniel J. McGrath, acting as NCES associate commissioner for assessment.
McGrath said, “If left unaddressed, this could alter the trajectories and life opportunities of a whole cohort of young people, potentially reducing their abilities to pursue rewarding and productive careers in mathematics, science, and technology.”
“Despite the countless obstacles that students faced over the course of the pandemic - including instability at home, decreased access to resources, teacher shortages, cyberbullying, and an uptick in violence once schools reopened - we also see pockets of remarkable resilience across the country, particularly in the country’s urban districts,” said Commissioner Carr.
Carr said, “But academic recovery cannot simply be about returning to what was ‘normal’ before the pandemic, as the pandemic laid bare an ‘opportunity gap’ that has long existed. It also showed how every student was vulnerable to the pandemic’s disruptions. We do not have a moment to waste.”
The data from The Nation’s Report Card released this week offers the first look at the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on what the nation’s 4th and 8th graders know and can do using a common measure of student achievement and the first student-level achievement data for all 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Department of Defense Schools, Puerto Rico, and 26 large urban districts that volunteered to participate in the assessment.
In a press release responding to the release of the National Report Card, NEA President Becky Pringle said, "While some will try to cherry-pick the NAEP results to serve their own political agenda, we know that student success should not be politicized. The results confirm what educators have been sounding the alarm about for more than two years: the pandemic exacerbated existing gaps in opportunity and learning experiences between white students and students of color, as well as between well-funded schools and chronically underfunded ones. The impacts were also felt by our English language learners and students with disabilities."
Pringle said, “To accelerate student learning and truly close opportunity gaps, our public schools require sustained and equitable resources that meet the unique needs of the communities and students they serve. NAEP scores are only one piece of a complex puzzle. We should view these scores alongside indicators that tell us about student learning conditions and life experiences so we can identify how to best support student success.”
National Results
Nationally, the average mathematics score for fourth-graders fell five points since 2019 (from 241 to 236), while the score for eighth-graders dropped eight points (from 282 to 274). In reading, average scores for both grades fell three points (from 220 to 217 at fourth grade and from 263 to 260 at eighth grade).
The percentage of students performing below the NAEP Basic level increased across both subjects and grade levels. In mathematics, 25 percent of fourth-graders were below the NAEP Basic level in 2022 (an increase from 19 percent in 2019) and 38 percent of eighth-graders were below NAEP Basic (an increase from 31 percent in 2019).
In reading, the percentage of fourth-graders below the NAEP Basic level increased from 34 percent in 2019 to 37 percent in 2022, and the percentage of eighth-graders below NAEP Basic increased from 27 percent in 2019 to 30 percent in 2022. The NAEP Basic achievement level represents partial mastery of the prerequisite knowledge and skills that are fundamental for performance at the NAEP Proficient level, which represents competency over challenging subject matter. The NAEP Basic level is the least stringent of the three achievement level goals for American students that are set by the National Assessment Governing Board.
Declines were most widespread on the eighth-grade mathematics assessment, where scores declined across most racial and ethnic groups and for students across the performance distribution (lower-, middle-, and higher-performing students). Fourth-grade mathematics scores declined for all racial and ethnic groups except native Hawaiian-Pacific Islander students.
In eighth-grade reading, scores declined only for White students among the racial/ethnic groups, by four points. Scores declined in fourth-grade reading for American Indian/Alaska Native, Black, Hispanic, and White students.
State Results
A majority of states saw lower scores, on average, across grades and subjects since 2019. There were no improvements in fourth- and eighth-grade mathematics, as average fourth-grade mathematics scores declined in 43 states and jurisdictions and did not change in 10, and eighth-grade mathematics scores declined in 51 states and jurisdictions and remained steady in two. There were no improvements in fourth-grade reading, as average fourth-grade reading scores declined in 30 states and jurisdictions and did not change in 22. At eighth grade, reading scores declined in 33 states and jurisdictions, did not change in 18, and rose in one (the Department of Defense Education Activity).
According to the Institute of Education Sciences' Revenues and Expenditures for Public Elementary Schools May 2022 report, the US National Average expenditures per pupil nationwide was $13,489.
In May 2022, the U.S. Census Bureau reported the average pupil expenditure in the western region was $12,802 with Alaska reporting the highest expenditure in the region of $18,313. The highest per pupil expenditure in the nation was in the northeast region with New York spending $25,518 per pupil. Alaska reported 129,872 students enrolled in the 2022 report. In October 1, 2018, NCES reports there were 130,963 students enrolled in Alaska, and for each, $18,393 was spent in the 2018–2019 school year.
According to Alaska Policy Forum (June 2022), in 2018-2019, Alaska was reported to be the sixth-highest per student expenditure nationwide; 63% of revenues for education came from the state of Alaska; Alaska had one of the highest percentages of revenues coming from federal sources; and $1.28 billion (53%) was spent in Alaska on instruction and $1 billion on support (43%).
The 50 states and the District of Columbia reported $794.6 billion in revenues collected for public elementary and secondary education in FY 20 vs. $783.0 billion in FY 19, which was a 1.5 percent increase after adjusting for inflation.
Alaska 2022 Results (129,872 students enrolled)
Alaska Grade 4 Math - Average Score 226 (Link displays best in Chrome)
In 2022, the average score of fourth-grade students in Alaska was 226. This was lower than the average score of 235 for public school students in the nation.
The average score for students in Alaska in 2022 (226) was lower than their average score in 2019 (232) and in 2003 (233).
28% At or above Proficient - The percentage of students in Alaska who performed at or above the NAEP Proficient level was 28 percent in 2022. This percentage was smaller than that in 2019 (33 percent) and was not significantly different from that in 2003 (30 percent).
65% At or above Basic -
The percentage of students in Alaska who performed at or above the NAEP Basic level was 65 percent in 2022. This percentage was smaller than that in 2019 (73 percent) and in 2003 (75 percent).
Alaska Grade 4 Reading - Average Score 204
In 2022, the average score of fourth-grade students in Alaska was 204. This was lower than the average score of 216 for public school students in the nation.
The average score for students in Alaska in 2022 (204) was not significantly different from their average score in 2019 (204) and was lower than their average score in 2003 (212).
24% At or above Proficient - The percentage of students in Alaska who performed at or above the NAEP Proficient level was 24 percent in 2022. This percentage was not significantly different from that in 2019 (25 percent) and in 2003 (28 percent).
51% At or above Basic - The percentage of students in Alaska who performed at or above the NAEP Basic level was 51 percent in 2022. This percentage was not significantly different from that in 2019 (53 percent) and was smaller than that in 2003 (58 percent
Alaska Grade 8 Math - Average Score 270 (Link displays best in Chrome)
In 2022, the average score of eighth-grade students in Alaska was 270. This was lower than the average score of 273 for public school students in the nation.
The average score for students in Alaska in 2022 (270) was lower than their average score in 2019 (274) and in 2003 (279).
23% At or above Proficient - The percentage of students in Alaska who performed at or above the NAEP Proficient level was 23 percent in 2022. This percentage was smaller than that in 2019 (29 percent) and in 2003 (30 percent).
59% At or above Basic - The percentage of students in Alaska who performed at or above the NAEP Basic level was 59 percent in 2022. This percentage was not significantly different from that in 2019 (63 percent) and was smaller than that in 2003 (70 percent).
Alaska Grade 8 Reading - Average Score 253 (Link displays best in Chrome)
In 2022, the average score of eighth-grade students in Alaska was 253. This was lower than the average score of 259 for public school students in the nation.
The average score for students in Alaska in 2022 (253) was not significantly different from their average score in 2019 (252) and was lower than their average score in 2003 (256).
26% At or above Proficient - The percentage of students in Alaska who performed at or above the NAEP Proficient level was 26 percent in 2022. This percentage was not significantly different from that in 2019 (23 percent) and in 2003 (27 percent).
63% At or above Basic - The percentage of students in Alaska who performed at or above the NAEP Basic level was 63 percent in 2022. This percentage was not significantly different from that in 2019 (63 percent) and in 2003 (67 percent).
More Reports (Links displays best in Chrome)
Learning Opportunities and Teacher Confidence During the Pandemic
NCES collected information on how the pandemic affected student learning experiences and opportunities as part of the 2022 NAEP administration.
Across both subjects and grades, higher percentages of higher-performing students (students performing at or above the 75th percentile) had access to key educational resources than lower-performing students (students performing below the 25th percentile) during remote learning in the 2020–21 school year, including the following:
- Access to a desktop computer, laptop, or tablet all the time;
- A quiet place to work at least some of the time;
- Their teacher available to help with schoolwork at least once or twice a week; and
- For eighth-graders, real-time video lessons with their teacher every day or almost every day.
NCES also collected information on teacher confidence in performing remote instruction tasks, including addressing knowledge and skill gaps that may have occurred due to pandemic-related school closures. Fifty percent of teachers or fewer reported feeling “quite” or “extremely” confident in their ability to address learning gaps:
- At fourth grade, 11 percent of students had teachers who reported being “extremely confident” in addressing knowledge and skills gaps, while 35 percent of teachers in mathematics and 36 percent of teachers in reading reported being “quite confident.”
- At eighth grade, 14 percent of students had teachers who reported being “extremely confident” in addressing knowledge and skills gaps, while 35 percent of teachers in mathematics and 36 percent of teachers in reading reported being “quite confident.”
About the Assessment
Since 1969, the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as The Nation’s Report Card, has been the largest nationally representative and continuing assessment of what students in public and private schools in the United States know and are able to do in various subjects. In 2022, NCES administered the NAEP mathematics and reading assessments to fourth- and eighth-graders in public and private schools in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Department of Defense Education Activity schools, Puerto Rico (mathematics only), and in 26 urban districts.
The assessments were administered between January and March of 2022. Results for states and districts are for public schools only.
Approximately 224,400 fourth-graders from approximately 5,780 schools and 222,200 eighth-graders from approximately 5,190 schools participated in the 2022 mathematics and reading assessments. Representative samples of schools and students are drawn from each state, district, Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Department of Defense Education Activity schools.
Source of News:
Nations Report Card
www..nationsreportcard.gov/U.S. Census Bureau
www.census.govNational Center for Educational Statistics
nces.ed.gov
nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/about/
Representations of fact and opinions in comments posted are solely those of the individual posters and do not represent the opinions of Sitnews.
Send a letter to the editor@sitnews.us
SitNews ©2022
Stories In The News
Ketchikan, Alaska
Articles & photographs that appear in SitNews are considered protected by copyright and may not be reprinted without written permission from and payment of any required fees to the proper freelance writers and subscription services.
E-mail your news & photos to editor@sitnews.us
Photographers choosing to submit photographs for publication to SitNews are in doing so granting their permission for publication and for archiving. SitNews does not sell photographs. All requests for purchasing a photograph will be emailed to the photographer.