The COVID-19 pandemic set back decades of academic progress for 9-year-olds, according to the results of special math and reading assessments administered during the pandemic.
The math scores of 9-year-olds nationwide dropped for the first time ever, accompanied by the largest average drop in reading scores since 1990, according to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES).
The average scores for 9-year-old students in 2022 declined five points in reading and seven points in math compared with 2020, according to data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP).[1]
