School Scores: What Should We Do?

For a while now, there's been a worry that students aren't doing as well as they should. The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is like a big test that helps educators and policymakers compare how kids are doing in reading and math across different states. This test happens every two years and gives us a good look at how the education system is doing. The problem is, states do their own tests every year, but the results aren't as reliable or tough as the NAEP. Only six states and D. C. have really high standards for fourth-grade reading. On January 29, the next NAEP results will come out. Experts think the news might not be good, especially for low-income students and students of color.

It's easy to blame the COVID-19 pandemic, but scores were already dropping since 2015 in reading and 2019 in math. So, what should we do? States need to keep measuring student performance consistently and learn from states that are doing well. NAEP is the only test that every state does, making it a fair way to check student performance. NAEP is going online in 2024, which will help make the test more flexible and give faster results. Without NAEP, states might not catch that some students are struggling. NAEP helps us see if things are getting better or worse. For example, Mississippi improved their reading scores by focusing on early literacy. Florida also did well by keeping high standards and helping students early. When the new NAEP results come out, it might show that things aren't great. But we shouldn't give up. We need to keep testing students nationwide and push for good policies in each state.

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