WASHINGTON – Denise Forte, interim CEO of The Education Trust, released the following statement regarding the National Assessment Governing Board and the National Center for Education Statistics release of the 2022 NAEP Mathematics and Reading results. The NAEP results include national-, state-, and select district-level scores for grades 4 and 8 in mathematics and reading and insights into students’ learning experiences.

“This year’s NAEP results are sobering, but not surprising. Approximately 175,000 students lost one or both parents or a grandparent caregiver during the pandemic. Many students — especially Black and Latino students, English learners, and students from low-income backgrounds — disproportionately experienced significant disruptions to their learning due to food and housing insecurity, unreliable access to high-speed internet and lack of computers and other devices, reduced access to student supports and education services, limited time to build strong relationships with their teachers, as well as significant reductions to in-person classroom time. Unless we take serious action to target resources that accelerate learning, the effects of the pandemic will be long lasting for students and will affect their ability to compete in the future economy.

“The pandemic hampered growth across all grades and subjects. But the decline in math scores in nearly all states at both the fourth and eighth grade level is particularly worrisome, and the increased score gap in math for Black and Latino students compared to White fourth graders should be setting off alarms for parents and policymakers across America.

“As the nation’s leaders look to help students recover from unfinished learning, continued federal and state targeted investments are crucial for students, especially students of color and students from low-income backgrounds, who are more likely to live in communities most impacted by the pandemic and who have been long underserved by our nation’s schools. Fortunately, there is plenty of data that shows what works to advance equity: targeted intensive tutoring and expanded learning time; improved student, family, and community engagement; increased access to safe and equitable learning environments; access to healthy foods, and strong relationships with educators. Now is the time to activate these resources and supports.

“The impact of the pandemic cannot be measured entirely by assessments. Nevertheless, we can use NAEP data to identify where students and educators need additional resources and supports and invest in proven strategies that accelerate learning and remedy persistent inequities. Students and the nation’s economic future can’t afford to wait.”

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