by Alan Wooten
Ohio recorded three-year decreases in scoring across the board for fourth graders and eighth graders in math and reading, respectively, according to a national study released this week.
The Nation’s Report Card, a product of the National Assessment of Educational Progress which began producing the report in 1969, cited an overall trend of decline in the United States. It comes in the COVID-19 era, when schools were closed by governments and students scrambled to learn remotely or get back into classrooms.
The national declines haven’t been this steep in three decades.
Ohio, like many states, has increased education funding in its annual budget. Lawmakers provided $12.5 billion in fiscal year 2022, and have designated $12.7 billion in 2023.
The proficiency level of fourth graders in math was 40%, down slightly from 41% three years earlier. The percentage of students at or above the basic level was 76%, down from 82% in 2019.
Broken down by ethnicity, white fourth graders had 10% at advanced proficiency, 46% at or above proficiency, and 85% at basic or above proficiency; Blacks had 1% at advanced proficiency, 12% at or above proficiency, and 43% at or above basic proficiency; and Hispanics had 3% at advanced proficiency, 17% at or above proficiency, and 45% at or above basic proficiency.
Fourth graders in math, while higher than the national average score of 235, were lower (238) than in 2019 (241). This was a score lower than just four states.
Boys fourth-grade math scores were 6 points higher than those of girls.
The proficiency level of fourth graders in reading was 35%, down slightly from 36% three years earlier. The percentage of students at or above the basic level was 65%, down from 68% in 2019.
Broken down by ethnicity, white fourth graders had 11% at advanced proficiency, 39% at or above proficiency, and 71% at basic or above proficiency; Blacks had 3% at advanced proficiency, 14% at or above proficiency, and 36% at or above basic proficiency; and Hispanics had 2% at advanced proficiency, 14% at or above proficiency, and 39% at or above basic proficiency.
Fourth graders in reading, while higher than the national average score of 216, were lower (219) than in 2019 (222). Girls fourth grade reading scores were 6 points higher than those of boys.
The proficiency level of eighth graders in math was 29%, down from 38% in 2019. The percentage at the basic level or above was 64%, down from 73% three years prior.
Broken down by ethnicity, white eighth-graders had 8% at advanced proficiency, 34% at or above proficiency, and 71% at basic or above proficiency; Blacks had 1% at advanced proficiency, 9% at or above proficiency, and 34% at or above basic proficiency; and Hispanics had 3% at advanced proficiency, 16% at or above proficiency, and 53% at or above basic proficiency.
Eighth graders in math, while higher than the national average score of 273, were lower (276) than in 2019 (286). There was little to no difference in scores between boys and girls for eighth-grade math.
The proficiency level of eighth graders in reading was 33%, down from 38% in 2019. The percentage at the basic level or above was 71%, down from 75% three years prior.
Broken down by ethnicity, white eighth-graders had 5% at advanced proficiency, 38% at or above proficiency, and 76% at basic or above proficiency; Blacks had 1% at advanced proficiency, 13% at or above proficiency, and 51% at or above basic proficiency; and Hispanics had 3% at advanced proficiency, 18% at or above proficiency, and 56% at or above basic proficiency.
Eighth graders in reading, while higher than the national average score of 259, were lower (262) than in 2019 (267). Girls were 7 points higher than the boys in reading scores.
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Alan Wooten has been a publisher, general manager and editor. His work has won national or state awards in every decade since the 1980s. He’s a proud graduate of Elon University and Farmville Central High in North Carolina. Wooten is a managing editor for The Center Square.Â
