The writing is on the wall, if you’re paying attention.
Recent national exam results indicate that high school seniors are facing significant challenges in math and reading, prompting Education Secretary Linda McMahon to label it a “devastating trend” on Tuesday.
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), often called the National Report Card, found that only 35% of high school seniors are proficient in reading. This is the lowest score recorded since the assessment began back in 1992.
Math proficiency for 12th graders has also plummeted, with only 22% meeting proficiency standards—the worst score since the current test started in 2005.
McMahon pointed out that “American students are testing at historic lows” based on results from tests taken by thousands of students earlier this year.
She continued, “Almost half of American high school seniors are performing below the basic level in math and reading.” There’s a widening achievement gap, with more seniors not meeting the basic benchmarks in these subjects.
Overall average scores for math and reading for Grade 12 have decreased by three points since 2019. Fourth graders’ average math scores have also dipped by three points since the pandemic, and eighth graders have experienced an eight-point decline from five years ago. The average reading scores for both fourth and eighth graders dropped five points between 2019 and 2024.
Matthew Solder, deputy at the National Center for Education Statistics, commented that “These results are alarming.” He noted that the overall score decline is closely linked to a significant drop among the lowest-performing students, continuing a trend that started even before the pandemic.
According to the latest findings, a higher percentage of high school seniors are scoring below the NAEP’s basic achievement level in math and reading than in previous assessments.
Furthermore, 32% of seniors did not reach the NAEP’s “basic” level, a significant rise from 20% in 1992. For math, 45% of 12th graders failed to meet the “basic” benchmark, up from 40% in 2005.
The National Report Card highlights a growing disparity between the highest and lowest performing students as well.
The scores in both math and reading declined across almost all student performance levels, except for those above the 90th percentile, with the 10th and 25th percentiles recording their lowest scores ever.
Tim Wahlberg, Chairman of the House Education Committee, expressed concern, saying, “Today’s NAEP scores reveal a troubling decline in mathematics, science, and reading.” He added, “Weak academic skills not only hinder performance; they threaten our economy and national security.”
Apart from the poor test scores, the report noted that nearly a third of high school seniors had been absent from school for more than three days in the month prior to the exam—an increase of 26% since 2019.
Senator Bill Cassidy stated that these scores show a failing K-12 system, emphasizing that students are not adequately prepared for high school or the workforce. “If things don’t change, we risk a generation of children failing to become productive adults,” he warned.
The NAEP has been administering national tests since 1969, targeting fourth and eighth graders every two years and high school seniors every four years.
Looking ahead, the Trump administration is set to launch a “toolkit” of educational resources focused on strategies like reading and artificial intelligence, as mentioned by McMahon. Meanwhile, states such as New York are tightening regulations on cell phone use in classrooms to enhance student concentration on their lessons.
