Nation's Report Card shows declining scores for 8th and 12th graders: "These results are sobering"

Students across the country are increasingly struggling to meet proficiency standards in science, math and reading, newly released data shows.

Assessing eighth graders in science and 12th graders in mathematics and reading, the students' average scores dropped in each subject between 2019 and 2024, according to the National Center for Education Statistics, which released its findings Tuesday in what it calls The Nation's Report Card .

The center evaluated approximately 23,000 eighth graders in science,19,300 12th graders in mathematics and 24,300 12th graders in reading from January to March 2024.

Among the eighth graders assessed in science , 31% performed at or above proficient, a performance standard established by the National Assessment Governing Board to describe what studen