The Americans students saw a big drop in their math and reading performance after the Covid-19 pandemic disrupted schooling for two years, according to a report released today by the Ministry of Education.
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), whose results were released today for the first time since 2019, measured the level of students of age from 9 to 14 years old in public schools. The data shows that their level in reading has fallen to that of 1992, while their level in maths has fallen to that of 2003.
A quarter of the students aged 9, and almost 40% of pupils aged 14, have not mastered the basic math concepts of their age group, the statistics show.
“This is a moment of truth for educationEducation Minister Miguel Cardona said to reporters, describing the results of the exams as “sad and unacceptable”.
“The way we’re going to react to it, it will determine not only our recovery but also the position of our country in the world”, he added.
Before the results were published, studies had shown that school closures due to Covid-19 had negatively affected the teaching of the students, particularly affecting families with low incomes and those from ethnic minorities.
Black and Hispanic 9-year-old students saw their math performance drop, compared to their white peers.
The pandemic has also worsened other pedagogical aspects, according to NCEP, the education ministry’s office responsible for statistics and the organization of these tests.
The NCEP calls for more mental health requests from students, but also more absenteeism, more school violence or even cyberbullying. Schools are also experiencing teacher and staff shortages, NCEP reports. Although it existed before the pandemic, the gap between the best performers and the worst performers has worsened due to the health crisis.
In a chart posted on Twitter, economist Emily Oster points out that states that implemented the most distance learning during the 2020-2021 school year saw a greater drop in student math performance compared to states where distance learning it wasn’t that common.
Source: News Beast
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