Press Release
Today, the National Assessment Governing Board and the National Center for Education Statistics released the results of the 2022 administration of the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), commonly known as the “Nation’s Report Card” and the largest nationally representative and continuing assessment of what America’s students know and can do in various subject areas. Historically, NAEP is administered every two years, but COVID-19 caused the assessment planned for 2021 to be delayed until 2022. While many states saw statistically significant declines in grades four and eight from 2019, South Carolina scores remained steady in grade four reading and math while measurably declining in grade eight.
“The results we see nationwide were perhaps expected but are no less concerning for educators who anticipated the consequences school closures would have on student achievement,” said South Carolina Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman. “While our state maintained its performance overall as the nation showed significant decline, these results confirm there is still much work to do. We commend the work of educators to help students recover and reaffirm commitments to double down on efforts that will address the needs of all students and prepare them for college, career, and citizenship.”
In the spring of 2022, a representative sample of South Carolina students participated in NAEP testing. Required by federal law, NAEP is administered to samples of students in each state and provides a means for valid nationwide comparisons of academic achievement. Approximately 3,700 fourth-graders and 3,600 eighth-graders participated from South Carolina.
Scores on the NAEP reading and mathematics tests are reported on a 500-point scale and as percentages in achievement levels: Below NAEP Basic, NAEP Basic, NAEP Proficient, and NAEP Advanced. NAEP is administered to samples of student subgroups and all results are population estimates.
Math
South Carolina's fourth-graders had an average score of 234 in 2022 compared to 237 in 2019 and 234 in 2017. The average national score for public schools in 2022 was 235, a 5-point drop from 2019. Though the national average score experienced a statistically significant drop from 2019 to 2022, South Carolina's average score for grade four did not.
South Carolina eighth-graders' average score was 269 compared to 276 in 2019 and 275 in 2017. The average national score for public schools in 2022 was 273, an 8-point drop from 2019.
Seventy-four percent of fourth-graders in South Carolina scored at or above NAEP Basic, a statistically insignificant drop from 77% in 2019 and 75% in 2017. In grade eight, 56% scored at or above NAEP Basic, compared to 64% in 2019 and 62% in 2017. At the national level, 74% of fourth-graders and 60% of eighth-graders scored at or above NAEP Basic.
Thirty-four percent of South Carolina's fourth-graders scored at or above NAEP Proficient, a statistically insignificant drop from 36% for 2019 and 32% for 2017. In grade eight, the percentage scoring at or above Proficient was 22% in 2022 compared to 29% in 2019 and 26% in 2017. Nationally, 35% of fourth-graders and 26% of eighth-graders scored at or above NAEP Proficient in 2022.
Reading
South Carolina's fourth-graders had an average reading score of 216 in 2022 compared to 216 in 2019 and 213 in 2017. The average national score for public schools in 2022 was 216, a 3-point drop from 2019. Though the national average score experienced a statistically significant drop from 2019 to 2022, South Carolina did not.
South Carolina's eighth-graders' average score was 254 in 2022 compared to 259 in 2019 and 260 in 2017. The national average for eighth-grade showed a 3-point drop from 262 to 259.
In South Carolina, 61% of fourth-graders scored at or above NAEP Basic, compared to 61% in 2019 and 59% in 2017. Sixty-three percent of eighth-graders performed at or above NAEP Basic in 2022, compared to 69% in 2019 and 71% in 2017. At the national level, 61% of fourth-graders and 68% of eighth-graders scored at or above NAEP Basic in 2022 compared to 65% and 72% in 2019.
Thirty-two percent of our state's fourth-grade students performed at or above NAEP Proficient in 2022 compared to 32% in 2019 and 29% in 2017. Twenty-seven percent of South Carolina's eighth-graders scored at or above NAEP Proficient compared to 29% in 2019 and 30% in 2017. At the national level, 32% of fourth-graders and 29% of eighth-graders performed at or above NAEP Proficient, while in the South, 31% of fourth-graders and 26% of eighth-graders performed at or above NAEP Proficient.
NAEP results for South Carolina, other states, and the nation can be found here.
