Illinois, Chicago Math, Reading Scores Down After COVID Slide: Report

ILLINOIS— There’s no question the coronavirus pandemic upended learning in Illinois, but fourth and eighth graders’ test scores in math and reading show just how much, according to an achievement assessment known as the Nation’s Report Card.

The report card, released Wednesday by the National Center for Education Statistics, also revealed a worrisome trend for democracy — slides in U.S. history and civics test scores, according to NCES Commissioner Peggy G. Carr.

The report from the NCES, an arm of the Education Department’s Institute of Education Sciences, looks at the key measurements of math and reading proficiency in 2022 compared with 2019, before the COVID-19 interruptions in learning.

In 2022, scores on the fourth and eighth-grade National Assessment of Educational Progress math tests were the lowest since the initial assessments in 1990. Reading scores also declined nationally.

In Illinois, the report shows that both fourth graders and eighth graders were slightly above the national average in both math and reading. Fourth graders across the state posted an average score of 237 in math, which was slightly better than the national average of 235, data shows. In reading, fourth graders had an average score of 218, which was again two points higher than the national average of 216. Illinois fourth-grade scores in reading and math were the same as it was in 2019, data shows.

At the eighth-grade level, Illinois students posted an average score of 275 in math, which was slightly higher than the national average score of 273. In reading, eighth graders tallied an average score of 262, which was three points higher than the national average of 259, according to the data. Illinois eighth graders’ 2022 scores in math dipped from the 2019 average score of 283 and dipped slightly in reading from a 2019 average score of 265.

In Illinois public schools:

• 38 percent of fourth graders scored at or above the proficiency level in math. The 38 percent mark is the same as it was in 2019 but is significantly higher than it was in 2000 when only 20 percent were proficient in math.
• 33 percent of fourth graders scored at or above the basic level in math. The figure is slightly lower than it was in 2020 when 34 percent of students were proficient in the subject and is slightly higher than students performed in 2003 when 31 percent were proficient.

On those tests for eighth graders:

• 27 percent of eighth graders scored at or above the proficiency level in math, which is lower than the proficiency scores in 2019 when 34 percent of eighth graders were proficient.
• 32 percent of eighth graders scored at or above the basic level in reading as compared to 2019 when 35 percent of students were proficient in the subject.

Data shows that Chicago scored significantly lower (222) for fourth-grade math scores than in other larger U.S. cities, where the average score was 227. Reading scores for Chicago fourth graders were 10 points lower than they were in 2019, but eight points higher than they were in 2003.

Eighth-grade math scores for Chicago students were also lower than the national big-city average by three points with the average score for students coming in at 263. The average score in reading came in at 251, compared to other big cities across the country, where the average score was 255. The eighth-grade math score is lower than in 2019 while the reading score from three years ago remained the same, data shows.

The report didn’t break out how Illinois eighth graders performed on U.S. history and civics tests, but the drop in scores nationally is “a national concern,” Carr, the NCES commissioner, said in a news release.

“Self-government depends on each generation of students leaving school with a complete understanding of the responsibilities and privileges of citizenship,” she said. “But far too many students are struggling to understand and explain the importance of civic participation, how American government functions, and the historical significance of events.”

U.S. history test scores have dropped since 2018 among all students except among the very top-performing students. In civics, scores declined for lower- and middle-performing students and did not change for higher-performing students.

The number of students who performed below the basic level increased in both subjects and about 4 in 10 eighth graders performed below the basic level in history.

Only 13 percent of eighth graders scored at or above the national proficiency level in U.S. history, the lowest proportion to reach that level in any subject on the tests, Dan McGrath, the acting associate commissioner of the NCES, said in the news release.

Only about one-fifth of students were at or above proficiency levels in civics, which is the second-lowest proportion of students reaching that level in any subject, he said. This was the first decline ever recorded by the civics assessment.