5 Takeaways from 12th Grade NAEP Math and Reading Results
5 Takeaways from 12th Grade NAEP Math and Reading Results
Every four years, the Nation’s Report Card (NAEP) provides insights about how 12th grade students are doing in math and reading. This is a critical juncture in students’ education to gather information about their learning. What changes are we seeing over time in students’ knowledge and skills at the end of elementary and secondary education? Are students leaving high school academically ready for entry-level college coursework? The 2024 Nation’s Report Card for 12th graders presents national-level scores for the first time since 2019, allowing us to understand these critical questions.
Here are 5 key takeaways from the 2024 NAEP results:
In 2024, 12th grade scores are down in both math and reading.
Average 12th grade scores in both math and reading declined by 3 points (compared to 2019). The 2024 average scores in both subjects are the lowest ever reported on each assessment.
In math, the achievement gap between the highest- and lowest-performing students widened.
In math, top performing 12th grade students – those performing at the 90th percentile – didn’t experience declines between 2019 and 2024, while those at the other percentiles did, resulting in a widening achievement gap. All of this means that struggling students are falling further behind.
The Governing Board sets NAEP Proficient as the goal, but more 12th graders than ever are failing to reach NAEP Basic.
In math, 45% of high school seniors are performing below NAEP Basic. Meanwhile, in reading, 32% are performing below NAEP Basic. In both subjects, these are the largest percentages failing to reach NAEP Basic ever reported. What does this mean in terms of skills? It means that nearly half of seniors likely cannot apply their knowledge of percentages to solve a real-world problem and that about a third of 12th graders likely cannot draw general conclusions based on concepts presented explicitly in a text.
Despite achievement declines, a greater percentage of 12th graders report being accepted to a four-year college.
More than half of 12th graders reported being accepted to a four-year college, a greater percentage than in 2019, but a lower percentage of them are likely to be ready for entry-level college coursework.
The release of these scores completes the 2019‒2024 picture: Declines across all grades and subjects.
These 2024 NAEP scores show that the nation as a whole has not yet recovered from pandemic-related disruptions; on top of declines that started a decade ago. Declines across math and reading in 4th, 8th, and 12th grades (and 8th grade science) show there is still a long road ahead.
