Falling reading scores for fourth and eighth graders since the COVID-19 pandemic continued dropping in 2024, while math scores showed little or no improvement. Scores for both age groups in both subjects remain below pre-pandemic levels.
The Nation’s Report Card, or the National Assessment for Educational Progress (NAEP), tracks student progress in school subjects like math and reading at both public and private schools. The 2024 assessment examined the math and reading progress of more than 108,000 fourth graders and 111,000 eighth graders.
The report scores performance on a scale of 0 to 500.
Are reading scores improving?
In 2024, the average fourth-grader’s reading score was 215 while the average eighth grader scored 258. Both averages were down two points from 2022, and five from 2019.
Along with lower average scores, the achievement gap between higher and lower performers is widening. At both grade levels, students who were already reading at a lower level saw the most profound drops. Fourth graders in the 10th percentile lost 10 more points from 2019 to 2024, while those in the 90th percentile dropped one. In eighth grade, high-performers lost two points in those five years, while the lower-performing cohort fell nine.
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How have reading proficiency rates changed?
The Nation’s Report Card defines “proficiency” for both age groups: A proficient fourth-grade reader — scoring a minimum of 238 — can understand the main idea of a story and make inferences about characters’ actions and feelings. A proficient eighth grader — scoring a minimum of 281 — can formulate opinions about an author’s arguments.
Reading proficiency rates have been declining for both groups since a 2017 peak. As of 2024, 31% of fourth graders are proficient for their age, down from 37% in 2017. Eighth graders have also dropped six percentage points, going from 36% proficiency in 2017 to 30% in 2024, the lowest percentage of reading proficiency in eighth graders since 1994 (when it was also 30%).
Are math scores improving?
From 2019 to 2022, average math scores dropped five points for fourth graders and eight points for eighth graders. In 2024, fourth graders regained a point, while eighth grade scores were not significantly different.
As with reading, the math achievement gap widened from 2022 to 2024 at both grade levels. Fourth graders in the 90th percentile returned to pre-pandemic performance levels, while those in the 10th percentile had no significant change. High-performing eighth graders increased three points, while their low-performing peers lost five.
How have math proficiency rates changed?
For fourth graders, proficiency in math means understanding concepts like addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. A proficient eighth-grade student would be expected to know how to use the Pythagorean theorem to find the length of a triangle’s hypotenuse.
In 2024, 39% of fourth graders met proficiency standards, a three-point improvement from 2022 but two points shy of 2019. Twenty-six percent of eighth graders met their standard, up two points from 2022 but still six points shy of the pre-pandemic level.
Where are students struggling the most?
Nationwide decreases in reading and math scores have been widespread since 2020. Fourth-grade reading scores have decreased significantly since 2019 in 38 states and Washington, DC, while increasing in just one — Louisiana. Eighth-grade reading scores have also dropped in 38 states, with no increases.
Fourth-grade math scores, meanwhile, have fallen by a statistically significant amount in 21 states and DC, while only Alabama registered an increase. Among eighth graders, 49 states and Washington, DC, had lower scores; Tennessee was the only exception.
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Page sources and methodology
All of the data on the page was sourced directly from government agencies. The analysis and final review was performed by USAFacts.
The National Center for Education Statistics
The Nation's Report Card
