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NAEP Long-Term Trend scale scores (0–500) across three age cohorts. The 2022 assessment recorded the steepest single-period declines in the test's history. By 2024, age-9 reading had returned to 2020 levels; age-13 and age-17 scores remained flat or continued declining.
The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) is the only nationally representative measure of what U.S. students know and can do in core subjects. Its Long-Term Trend assessment has tracked age-9, age-13, and age-17 students on a consistent scale since the early 1970s, making it the gold standard for comparing performance across decades. The 2022 results — released in October 2022 — were described by Education Secretary Miguel Cardona as "a five-alarm fire." The 2024 follow-up showed partial recovery only among the youngest cohort, while middle and high school scores remained at multi-decade lows.
Congress appropriated approximately $190 billion in Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) funds across three tranches from 2020 to 2021. Research on spending effectiveness is mixed: some districts invested in high-dosage tutoring with measurable results; others spent funds on facilities, technology, and staff salaries with less direct impact on test scores. The ESSER III obligation deadline passed in September 2024, closing the window for new commitments.