Michigan students' scores stagnate in newly released national assessment
Michigan students stagnated in performance in reading and math in a critical national assessment taken every two years, largely making no significant gains — or sustaining significant losses — since a drop in scores following the pandemic.
The results released Wednesday show the state's education system likely has a long road ahead in strengthening student achievement.
And the scores, as they have in previous years, illustrate a vast achievement gap between the state's economically disadvantaged students and those who are not from low-income homes, as well as long-running schisms that show students of color scoring lower than white students. There was a glimmer of excitement in the numbers, however, for Detroit Public Schools Community District, which saw a significant score increase in the fourth grade math category.
Michael Rice, state superintendent of education, said in an interview that the scores show that "we have work to do" across Michigan in improving reading and math outcomes for students. Rice attributed the lagging numbers in part to the pandemic and the rise of constantly pinging cellphones.
"Children, as a rule, have challenges shutting that out and shutting it off. And so what we know is: Children are reading less and what we know is that part of reading achievement is putting in the reps, putting in the time," he said. "You've got to read."
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Michigan fourth and eighth graders' reading and math scores only fluctuated by a few points between 2022 and 2024 on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), an assessment taken by a random sample of students every two years across the country. Michigan is not the only state with sluggish scores: Most other states in both reading and math saw very little progress on the NAEP assessment. Officials with the National Center for Education Statistics, which compiles the score data, said even progress made nationally in a few areas, such as math, was driven by high-performers, meaning that students historically known to struggle on this assessment continue to struggle.
Nationally, education leaders said with the release of the data that the results spell trouble for America's public school students.
"There are significant challenges for us as a nation in these data, the gap between the highest and lowest performing students in the eighth grade has widened in both reading and math," said Peggy Carr, commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, in a conference call with reporters. Carr said a recent survey also shows that students enjoy reading less, underscoring a struggle to improve reading outcomes among public school students.
In Michigan, students took tests in reading and math in fourth and eighth grade. The reading results showed:
In fourth grade, the average reading score in Michigan was 209 in 2024, compared with 212 in 2022, which was categorized as not a significant change, and 218 in 2019. The fourth grade national average was 214 in 2024.
In eighth grade, the average reading score in Michigan was 255 in 2024, compared with 259 in 2022, which was categorized as not a significant change, and 263 in 2019. The eighth grade national average was 257 in 2024.
The math results showed:
In fourth grade, the average math score in Michigan was 235 in 2024, compared with 232 in 2022, which was categorized as not a significant change, and 236 in 2019. The fourth grade national average was 237 in 2024.
In eighth grade, the average math score in Michigan was 270 in 2024, compared with 273 in 2022, which was categorized as not a significant change, and 280 in 2019. The eighth grade national average was 272 in 2024.
Detroit's public school district has long lagged behind statewide average scores, mirroring state M-STEP assessment results. But district Superintendent Nikolai Vitti in more recent years has touted some advances in the numbers, showing that the district is improving its outcome for students, many of whom are economically disadvantaged.
Most of the categories in Detroit's average NAEP scores in this round did not change significantly. In fourth grade reading, for example, the 2024 score was 174, compared with 176 in 2022.
But Detroit did see a significant change in fourth grade math, going from an average score of 194 in 2022 to 200 in 2024.
Schools have poured billions of dollars in federal aid meant to stem learning losses into tutoring and other programs to help struggling students.
But M-STEP and NAEP scores haven't inched up. That doesn't mean losses between 2024 going back before the pandemic can all be chalked up to the pandemic.
"This is not just a pandemic story," said Carr, who pointed out that national scores going back decades have declined.
In particular, Michigan students identified as economically disadvantaged struggled in every category. For instance, in eighth grade math, students identified as economically disadvantaged scored, on average, 21 points lower than those not in that classification.
These achievement gaps are nothing new in Michigan.
But, in recent years, state leaders and lawmakers have directed millions of budget dollars to try to improve outcomes for historically marginalized students. Leaders with nonprofits such as EdTrust Midwest have called for even more investment, including a more targeted investment in the teaching workforce in low-income areas. Rice, too, said that more funding should go to lowering class sizes in vulnerable districts like Detroit and Flint, where teachers have upward of 30 students to juggle in one classroom.
Rice also said he believes the state has made some good moves in recent years, particularly in passing legislation that will screen for dyslexia in young readers, that will pay off in the long run on future NAEP tests.
Contact Lily Altavena: laltavena@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan students' scores stagnate on just released national assessment
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