Schools
Students' Scores In U.S. History, Civics Continue To Decline
Only 13 percent of students scored proficient in history, the report said.
Scores nationwide testing eighth graders’ understanding of U.S. history continued a decade of decline in 2022 and fell for the first time in civics, according to data released Tuesday.
Only 13% of students scored proficient in history and only 22% scored proficient in civics on the National Assessment of Educational Progress; 40% of students scored below the basic level of knowledge in U.S. history, a decline from 34% in 2018.
The implication is a large proportion of students lacking a strong foundation and understanding of the subjects are entering high schools where civics and history are facing highly politicized debates over content and instruction. Some California teachers are toning down or avoiding vigorous discussions to avoid contention.
“There are a number of schools implementing outstanding history and civics programs for youth in California and across the nation. But sadly, they are the exception and not the norm,” said Michelle Herczog, coordinator of history and social science instruction for the Los Angeles County Office of Education. “The dismal NAEP findings need to be a call to action for every American school, beginning in kindergarten, to energize the teaching of U.S. history and civics in non-partisan ways, as an educational priority.”
Said Leslie Muldoon, executive director of the National Assessment governing board, an independent body that sets policy for NAEP: “Schools at all grade levels have a core role to play in instruction around citizenship, knowledge and skills.”
The drop in results was not surprising; 2022 scores released last fall in math and reading plummeted in fourth and eighth grade nationally and, to a lesser extent, in California.
“Given what we already know about how Covid affected students’ reading and math skills, I think it’s important to emphasize the disruption caused by the pandemic,” said Martin West, the academic dean at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a member of NAEP’s governing board.
But, he said, noting U.S. history scores fell by a similar rate.
