Student Math Assessment Scores Largely Unchanged

In 2019, average mathematics scores for students across the nation were one point higher at grade 4 and 1 point lower at grade 8 than in 2017.  Approximately 296,900 students across the nation participated in the 2019 mathematics assessment administered by the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), the largest nationally representative and continuing assessment of what America's students know and can do in various subject areas.

In the 8th grade assessment, Connecticut’s average student score was tied for 10th highest in the nation, behind Massachusetts, New Jersey, Minnesota, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Virginia, Vermont and tied with five other states.

Connecticut was one of 18 states in which there was no significant change in 2019 compared to 2017, but Connecticut’s student performance was higher than the national average and did reverse a slight downward trend in recent years.  In 2019, the average score of eighth-grade students in Connecticut was 286. This was higher than the average score of 281 for public school students in the nation.

For fourth-grade public school students, Connecticut was one of only nine states where the student assessment scores increased.  Connecticut students were also above the national average for fourth graders.

For both 4th and 8th graders, however, scores were slightly higher a decade ago, according to the NAEP data. In 2019, the average score of fourth-grade students in Connecticut was 243, higher than the average score of 240 for public school students in the nation. The average score for students in Connecticut in 2019 (243) was higher than their average score in 2017 (239).

Nationwide, looking at state/jurisdiction performance in 2019, average mathematics scores at grade 4 were higher in nine states/jurisdictions and lower in three states compared to 2017. Among the nine states/jurisdictions with score increases, two scored higher than the national average score for public school students in 2019; three had average scores that were not significantly different from the national public average, and four scored lower. Comparing the three states with score decreases in 2019 to the national public average, one scored higher, one had an average score that was not significantly different, and one state scored lower.

At grade 8, three states/jurisdictions had score increases since 2017 and all three scored lower than the national public average in 2019. In comparison to 2017, six states scored lower in 2019; among these states, four scored higher than the national public average and two had scores that were not significantly different from the national public average.

In 2019, the average score of eighth-grade students in Connecticut was 286. This

was higher than the average score of 281 for students in the nation. In 2019, male students in Connecticut had an average score that was not significantly different from that for female students.

The data also indicated that the demographic disparity in education continues, in Connecticut and nationwide.  In 2019, Black students had an average score that was 42 points lower than that for White students. This performance gap was not significantly different from that in 2000 (45 points). In 2019, Hispanic students had an average score that was 36 points lower than that for White students. This performance gap also was not significantly different from that in 2000 (42 points).

Also known as The Nation’s Report Card, NAEP has provided important information about how students are performing academically since 1969.  NAEP is a congressionally mandated project administered by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) within the U.S. Department of Education and the Institute of Education Sciences (IES).