Public school leaders who share concerns about academic recovery.
K-12 Dive
~0%
Percent of college faculty who say current students are less prepared in critical thinking, reading, and analysis compared to pre-Covid students.
College Board
Too many vulnerable students have disengaged from school.
K–12 students chronically absent during Covid-19:
0%
Before the pandemic
0%
In 2022
0%
In 2023
0%
In 2024
Return to Learn Tracker
K–12 students chronically absent in the highest and lowest performing districts:
AEI
Young people continue to struggle with mental health.
High schoolers in 2023 who reported persistent sadness or hopelessness:
40%
Who seriously considered suicide:
20%
Who attempted suicide:
~10%
DHHS CDC
Likelihood that parents of chronically absent children report behavior or mental health issues:
3x more likely
USC
The pandemic accelerated a preexisting decline in math performance.
Almost no one is immune: Scores declined between 2019 and 2024 for all but the highest-performing students at the 90th percentile (NAEP).
2013
Year math scores began to fall nationally.
NAEP Nation's Report Card
+9%
Increase in the proportion of students experiencing math anxiety, 2012–2022.
EDWeek
-11pts
Drop in NAEP 8th-grade math scores from 2013–2024.
In 2024, NAEP 12th-grade math scores were the lowest recorded since the current assessment began in 2005.
NAEP Nation's Report Card
Students today aren’t getting the math learning opportunities they deserve.
Portion of US students who attend school in districts that haven’t fully recovered academically in math post-pandemic:
80%+
Education Recovery Scorecard
Share of 8th-grade students Below Basic in NAEP 2024 math:
39%
NAEP
Share of 8th graders taking Algebra 1 today:
36%
EdResearch for Action
Additional schooling time required for 8th graders in 2024 to reach pre-pandemic math levels:
0 months
An estimated 33% of 12th graders were academically prepared for college in mathematics in 2024, down from 37% in 2019 (NAEP).
NWEA
Disparities are deepening.
By Race
- 2 pts
Decline in 4th-grade math scores between 2019 and 2024 for White students.
-4 pts
Decline in 4th-grade math scores between 2019 and 2024 for Black and Latine students.
By Future Success
Gaps are becoming chasms. With declining scores for lower-performing students at the 10th and 25th percentiles, the achievement gap between the highest- and lowest-performing students continues to widen and was larger in 2024 than in all previous assessments (NAEP).
Compared to students scoring Below Basic on NAEP 8th-grade math, students scoring in the Advanced category are…
4x
more likely to attend college.
30x
more likely to complete a 4-year degree within five years.
By Achievement Level
-4 pts
Change in math scores for US 4th-grade students at the 90th percentile, 2011–24.
-12 pts
Change in math scores for US 4th-grade students at the 10th percentile, 2011–24.
NAEP
Parents and students aren’t getting the truth about performance.
of grades are inflated.
Crescendo Education Group
of parents believe their child is on grade level in math based on report cards:
Learning Heroes
of students who are performing at Proficient or above in NAEP 4th-grade math.
NAEP Nation's Report Card
Teachers aren’t getting enough training and support to teach math effectively.
Share of middle school math teachers without a math or math education degree:
55%
US DOE NCES
Change in the number of math teachers graduating between 2012–13 and 2019–20:
-36%
CRPE
Number of states with laws designed to improve reading instruction and outcomes:
40
(+ DC)
EducationWeek
Number of states with laws designed to improve math instruction and outcomes:
13
(+ DC)
CRPE
Share of district leaders reporting they use the “science of math” extensively to guide their selection of math resources: