ATLANTA – Scores on a biennial federal test for Georgia fourth and eighth graders show that students on the whole are not progressing enough to regain academic losses sustained during the pandemic.
“Overall, student achievement has not returned to pre-pandemic performance,” said Peggy G. Carr, commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, which collects and analyses education data.
The U.S. agency administers the National Assessment of Educational Progress, known informally as the nation’s report card. It is given to a sampling of students at two grade levels nationwide. It is the only government measure that allows comparisons between the states.
“Where there are signs of recovery, they are mostly in math and largely driven by higher-performing students,” Carr said. “Lower-performing students are struggling, especially in reading.”
Georgia’s average scores moved a bit, but the changes were considered statistically insignificant: reading dropped two points in fourth grade and one point in eighth grade while math rose a point in fourth grade and dropped two points in eighth grade.
Georgia’s fourth grade students matched the national average in reading and their score was not statistically different from the nation’s in math, according to the Georgia Department of Education. The state’s eighth grade students beat the national average in math by two points but scored three points lower in math.
“Multiple data points indicate we are moving in the right direction, but more work is needed,” State School Superintendent Richard Woods said.
Woods predicted NAEP scores will rise over time because of increases in results on the Georgia Milestones tests after new math standards were implemented several years ago. He said recent state mandates in literacy instruction could improve reading scores as new literacy coaches are added to schools.