Dupage Policy Journal

State Rep. Deanne Mazzochi (R-Elmhurst) said the latest National Report Card demonstrates that American students fell even farther behind during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The results from the 2022 Nation's Report Card demonstrate that just 37.5% of Illinois 4th graders can do math at or above grade-level proficiency. One-third of the state's 4th-grade students can read at grade level. Education officials were concerned about these results.

"A serious wakeup call for us all. In NAEP, when we experience a 1- or 2-point decline, we’re talking about it as a significant impact on a student’s achievement. In math, we experienced an 8-point decline — historic for this assessment" Peggy Carr, commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, said. 

Mazzochi believes that the coronavirus caused the United States to fall behind other nations in education. 

"Even before the pandemic the US was lagging behind other countries in math, science, and reading," Mazzochi said. "The latest results from the National Report Card show this was greatly exacerbated by the loss of learning through online schooling as a result of closures during the pandemic. Now more than ever we need a return to the basics in public education. The foundations set up in 4th grade, like consistent reading, will help determine every child's future."

Illinois' 8th graders are struggling even more as just 26.5% can perform math at their grade level, and 32.4% can read at grade level. Reading and math scores declined around the United States, AP News reported. The Nation's Report Card is based on discoveries from the National Assessment of Educational Progress, which is typically administered every two years. However, due to the pandemic, the latest test results prior to 2022 were from 2019, as there was no report card in 2021.