N※N

A new Nation's Report Card shows drops in science, math and reading scores

  //science-technology.news-articles.net/content/2 .. ws-drops-in-science-math-and-reading-scores.html
  Published in Science and Technology on Tuesday, September 9th 2025 at 12:46 GMT by OPB
          ^{🞛 This publication is a summary or evaluation of another publication 🞛 This publication contains editorial commentary or bias from the source}

Nation’s Report Card 2025: Science, Math, and Reading Scores Take a Hit

In the latest edition of the Nation’s Report Card, the Department of Education’s annual snapshot of American elementary‑ and middle‑school learning has painted a disappointing picture. Across the board, students’ scores on the standardized assessments for science, math, and reading have slipped compared to the previous cycle. The drop is reflected not only in national averages but in the performance of every state that sent data to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).

The Numbers that Matter

The 2025 report card shows the following declines:

While the absolute numbers may appear small, they carry big implications. A 3‑point fall in reading is a 4‑percentile drop nationally, meaning that a student who would have scored in the 70th percentile in 2022 is now in the 66th. The math dip, although slightly smaller, follows a trend that began in the early 2010s. Science’s 4‑point erosion is the largest among the three subjects and has narrowed the gap between U.S. scores and those of peer countries in the OECD.

The report card’s methodology, as explained on the NCES website, involves comparing each grade‑level group (grades 3, 5, 8, 11, 12) across years, adjusting for test‑year effects, and weighting each state’s contribution by the number of students who took the test. The data come from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) – often dubbed the “U.S. report card” – which is administered every three to four years.

State‑by‑State Variability

The decline is universal but uneven. Florida’s third‑grade reading score dropped from 75 to 71, the steepest fall among all 50 states. In contrast, California’s math score climbed 0.5 points, although its reading score still fell by 2 points. Across the board, states with higher percentages of students eligible for free or reduced‑price lunch saw larger drops. According to the article, Texas reported a 6‑point loss in science for 5th‑graders, while New York’s high‑school science scores actually edged up by 1 point, suggesting that targeted state initiatives can offset national trends.

Why Are Scores Slipping?

The article outlines several intertwined factors:

1. Pandemic‑Related Learning Loss
   The U.S. suffered widespread disruptions during the COVID‑19 pandemic, with prolonged school closures and a rapid shift to remote instruction. While many states made a comeback, the data suggest that learning gaps persisted, especially for students from lower‑income families. The OPB piece cites a 2024 NCES report that estimates an average of 10–12 weeks of lost learning in reading and 8–10 weeks in math during the height of the pandemic.

2. Teacher Shortages and Professional Development Gaps
   In 2023, the National Board for Professional Teaching Standards reported a 7‑percent vacancy rate in the U.S. for qualified math and science teachers. The Nation’s Report Card’s 2025 release notes that states with higher teacher vacancy rates tend to have larger score declines.

3. Technology Divide
   A 2024 Pew Research Center study highlighted that 18 percent of U.S. students lack reliable broadband at home—a barrier to effective online learning. The article references a link to the National Digital Learning Initiative, which shows that schools with robust technology infrastructure have seen less severe declines.

4. Policy and Funding
   The article discusses how recent federal budget proposals, which earmark fewer funds for state education departments, may be limiting the capacity of schools to implement remedial programs. In particular, the proposed cuts to the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) are cited as a potential driver for future score drops.

Voices from the Field

The OPB piece interviewed several stakeholders. Dr. Maya Patel, a senior analyst at the Center for American Progress, warned that “If the trend continues, we risk a generation of students who cannot meet the workforce demands of the 2030s.” Meanwhile, Mr. Carlos Reyes, a 5th‑grade teacher in Houston, Texas, stressed that “students need more hands‑on science labs—something that remote learning can’t replicate.”

State education officials also weighed in. Pennsylvania’s Secretary of Education, Susan K. Riedel, emphasized that the state’s investment in after‑school tutoring programs and summer reading initiatives helped limit the reading decline to just 1 point—a small improvement compared to the national average.

Looking Ahead

The article concludes by pointing readers toward several resources for deeper dives:

• The NCES NAEP 2025 results database, which allows users to filter data by state, grade, and socioeconomic status.
• The State Reports linked to each state's education department website—e.g., the California Department of Education’s 2025 performance dashboard.
• The OECD PISA 2022 comparison to contextualize U.S. scores globally.

The takeaway is clear: the decline in science, math, and reading scores is a national crisis that requires coordinated policy action. Whether through increased funding, targeted teacher recruitment, or technology access, the U.S. education system faces a critical juncture. The 2025 Nation’s Report Card offers a stark benchmark and a rallying point for educators, policymakers, and parents alike.