National report card saw U.S. reading, math scores are down after pandemic

Students across the country saw marked drops in reading and math scores following the pandemic, according to a “report card” on Monday that will reignite scrutiny of virus-induced disruptions to classroom learning.

Drops in math scores were particularly upsetting and amounted to the biggest decline since the National Assessment of Educational Progress started taking a sample of scores from fourth graders and eighth graders in 1990.

A paltry 26% of eighth graders were considered proficient in math in 2022 — down from 34% in 2019, which was prior to the pandemic and the most recent year in which the national report card was issued. Fourth graders in over 40 states saw their math scores decline. Only 36% were considered proficient, down from 41%.

Reading scores offered little solace, with only one-third of fourth graders marked proficient, continuing a slide that began before the coronavirus hit. Only 31% of eighth graders received proficient scores, the lowest average since 1998.