Maine 4th-graders' math and reading skills are among the lowest in the country

Yahoo

30-01-2025

Jan. 30—Maine fourth graders' math and reading skills are among the lowest in the country and have dropped the most since pre-pandemic levels. That's according to new data released Wednesday by the National Center for Education Statistics.
The center is part of the federal education department and releases its National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as the Nation's Report Card, every two years as mandated by Congress. The report measures math and reading scores for a sample of fourth and eighth graders from both public and private schools.
This year's data shows that nationally, students have not made up for pandemic-era learning losses, and Maine has seen some of the most significant declines.
The 2024 report card says just 33% of Maine fourth graders are proficient in math, one of the lowest proficiency levels in the nation. Compared to the rest of the country, those same students were also below the average for reading, with only 26% deemed proficient.
The report detailed similar numbers for eighth-graders, with 25% proficient in math and 26% in reading — both near the national average.
But the Maine Department of Education cast doubt on the significance of the national scores, pointing to state assessment data that shows about two-thirds of students across seven grades are considered proficient in reading by its standards.
PANDEMIC LOSSES NOT MADE UP
Maine's NAEP scores plummeted between 2019 and 2022, as did scores across the country. Reading scores dropped to their lowest level ever for both fourth and eighth graders in Maine, the national data showed. Officials attributed that to major pandemic-era education disruptions.
A major focus of this year's report card was whether students have made up for those declines. Like most of the country, Maine has not.
Before the pandemic, Maine's reading and math scores across both age groups were higher than the national average. But since 2019, they've fallen roughly 10 percentage points in both subjects. For fourth graders, that's the largest drop of any state, in both subjects.
Peggy Carr, commissioner for the National Center for Education Statistics, called the report card sobering during an NAEP webinar Wednesday afternoon announcing the new data.
Carr said the difficulty is most noticeable in reading. She said there are some encouraging results in math, but only among higher performing students, while lower-performing students have continued to struggle.
"These results show that students are not where we need them to be, or where we want them to be," she said.
DOE URGES CAUTION
A spokesperson for the state education department said in an email Wednesday that changes in Maine between 2022 and 2024 were not statistically significant, and said pandemic impacts on education are still being felt nationally.
"In Maine, as in all states, pandemic-related learning loss has impacted student performance. Fourth graders who took the NAEP in 2024 were in kindergarten at the height of the pandemic," spokesperson Chloe Teboe said.
The DOE also pointed to differences in the sample size between the national and state assessments.
"The NAEP validity depends upon a large aggregate number of data points from students nationwide, providing a reasonable snapshot in time-related to U.S. student performance," Teboe said. "At the state level, however, given the much smaller sample size, it is important to be careful about drawing any sweeping conclusions based on NAEP data."
Nearly 85,000 students took the state assessment last year, 65% of whom met or were above the state's expectations, she said.
The department said it has launched several evidence-based math and literacy programs to help Maine school districts, like the Math Pathways toolkit and free literacy module access for teachers.
A spokesperson for Educate Maine, a statewide nonprofit that advocates for education policies, said the NAEP results highlight persistent challenges across the country, like the impact of poverty on learning.
"These metrics also highlight persistent achievement and opportunity gaps, which often reflect disparities in resources and support rather than students' potential or educators' efforts," said Kate Carlisle, the organization's communications manager. "Addressing these gaps requires a comprehensive approach that goes beyond standardized assessments and focuses on equitable access to high-quality education, economic stability, and community support."
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