Falling Behind? What NAEP’s Scores Reveal—and What We Must Do

High school seniors across America are losing ground in reading and math—and not just from the pandemic. According to the 2024 NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress), 12th graders posted their lowest reading scores in over 20 years. Math scores are also deeply troubling, with nearly 45% of seniors scoring below “Basic.” That’s the highest rate since NAEP’s framework shifted in 2005.

If public education is meant to prepare students for life—not just for tests—these numbers demand a clear-eyed reckoning.

What the Decline Tells Us

1. Long before COVID, students were slipping: While the pandemic made things worse, the drop in performance didn’t start there. The slide in high school reading and math has been steady for years. That tells us that many of our current policies were not designed to prevent decline—they actually helped it happen.

2. “Below Basic” is a warning, not just a label: Over 30% of seniors can’t find basic information in texts; almost half struggle with foundational math. These are not gaps to be ignored. These are clear signs that many students are entering adulthood without the essential literacy and numeracy skills.

3. Widening gaps expose inequity: The NAEP results show achievement gaps growing—among income groups, between high- and low-performing students, and even by gender in certain STEM areas. When we let some students fall behind, everyone loses.

4. We’re trading depth for breadth: Experts point out that reading assignments are shorter, texts less demanding; math instruction often focuses on procedure rather than understanding. Skills like reading long-form texts, coherent writing, applied math, and critical thinking—all suffer.

   
   

What We’ve Forgotten—and What We Need to Reclaim

• Basic literacy stamina: Students once read dozens of books in high school; now, some may only read a few. Recovering reading volume and complexity matters.

• Foundational numeracy: Multiplication facts, algebraic thinking, practical problem solving—these aren’t optional extras. We need them to prepare young adults for the workforce and civic life.

• Writing with purpose: Essays, research papers, and coherent arguments were central. When writing is infrequent or fragmented, students lose the muscle of persuasion, clarity, and extended thought.

• Engagement with real texts: Literature, history, science—students used to read deeply and discuss. That remains the only way to build comprehension, critical thinking, and an informed citizenry.

  
  

Policy & Practice Must Shift

If these results are going to serve as anything more than a wake‑up call, then reforms must follow—reforms that trust teachers, center deep learning, and demand accountability along with support.

• Empower teachers to spend more time on skill development, less time on test prep.

• Use assessments that reflect real life: reading lengthy texts, solving real‑world math problems, and writing coherently.

• Prioritize resources for reading programs, writing development, and academic recovery where students are falling furthest behind.

• Reexamine curriculum maps to ensure they include demanding texts, extended writing tasks, and sustained attention—not just “basic” requirements.

• Make accountability about growth, not just proficiency—a system that recognizes progress for all students, not just the ones at the top.

  
  

Conclusion: Decline Isn’t Inevitable

We can’t pretend falling scores are a surprise. We’ve built a system that prioritizes speed over depth, compliance over craftsmanship, test scores over literacy and numeracy. These are choices—not accidents.

If we want public education to fulfill its promise, then we must reclaim what matters: deep reading, strong writing, mathematical thinking, and classrooms where students are more than data points.

Because the future demands more than compliance. It deserves excellence. And that starts with demanding better for our students—and for our teachers.