The results are in, and they are not great.
International math and science data released earlier this month gave the world its first chance to compare progress since the pandemic.
For the United States, the COVID-19 pandemic appears to have reversed more than 20 years of progress in math scores, according to results from the Trends in international mathematics and science study. Peggy Carr, commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, said so much during a briefing with journalists.
The average math score among fourth- and eighth-graders in 2023 was statistically the same as in 1995, when the parents of some of today's students were in elementary school.
Looking at the big picture
Fourth graders scored an average of 517 points in math in 2023, putting them just one point below the average score in 1995. The national average peaked in 2011 at 541 points.
In 2023, the United States ranked 28th out of 63 education systems, rubbing shoulders with Portugal and Cyprus. Singapore, Chinese Taipei (Taiwan) and Hong Kong (China) and the Republic of Korea (South Korea) took the top spots.
When it comes to the highest-level students, those whose scores place them as advanced in mathematics, 13 percent of American students earned the distinction in 2023 compared to the international average of 7 percent.
Even with nearly double the average number of advanced fourth-graders, the United States finished 17th on that list, close behind Romania, Poland and Bulgaria.
Middle High School Mathematics
In terms of eighth grade math, the United States ranks 24th out of 45 educational systems, between the United Arab Emirates and Israel. Singapore, Chinese Taipei and the Republic of Korea occupied the top three places in the ranking.
The United States ranked 21st in the advanced benchmark ranking with 8 percent of students, one point above the international average.
Like their younger counterparts, eighth graders' average score of 488 in 2023 was about the same as what they earned in 1995. Their highest average score was 518 in 2015.
Gaps by race
While fourth graders in the United States scored an average of 517 in math, the differences are stark between racial groups.
Asians, whites and children of two or more races each scored between 54 and 25 points above average.
Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, black and Hispanic children scored 60 to 26 points below average.
The gaps carried over to eighth-grade scores, where Asian and white students scored 92 and 28 points above average. The average scores for black and Hispanic students were 45 and 32 points below the overall average.
Pamela Burdman, executive director of Just Equations, an educational equity nonprofit, says math score gaps are a persistent problem because they are a reflection of resources. That includes the resources available to schools (such as the ability to attract math teachers instead of settling for substitutes) and student resources.
“Some students have more access to parents who can help them with their math homework than other students,” Burdman says. “Some students may have one parent who stays at home, other children may have two parents who are away from home a lot and working multiple jobs. “There are so many factors inside and outside of school that can affect this.”
Lower math scores can become a barrier that has a ripple effect on students' academic opportunities in college and even their careers, Burdman explains. This is because it is typically the students considered high achievers who are offered more advanced math classes as they progress through middle and high school, and colleges want to see those advanced classes on students' transcripts at the end. make admission decisions.
Burdman believes the best way to solve the problem of falling math scores is to address it at all levels of government (district, state and federal) the same way officials addressed third-grade reading scores a few years ago. years.
“This may be something that, in addition to state and federal investment, private foundations and other entities could help support,” Burdman says. “But it definitely needs that concentrated effort.”
Boys against girls
Globally, boys scored higher in mathematics than girls. The only country where fourth grade girls scored higher than boys was South Africa.
In the United States, the gap between the average math scores of girls and boys in fourth grade increased: from 3 points in 1995 to 18 points in 2023.
Eighth-grade boys outperformed girls in math in 24 countries, and the genders had the same average scores in 18 other countries. Average scores for eighth-grade girls were highest in Oman, South Africa, Bahrain and the Palestinian National Authority, but the report cautioned that data from the latter three should be interpreted “with caution” due to high margins of error.
In 1995, average scores in the United States were the same across genders. In 2023, girls were 14 points behind boys.
EdSurge has previously written about the divergence in boys' and girls' math scores, and results from a survey of more than 17,500 girls suggested that building confidence could help them stay motivated to be interested in and enjoy math classes.
Shane Woods, executive director of the nonprofit mentoring group Girlstart, said girls need to feel supported and safe enough to make mistakes in the face of pressure to appear perfect.
Girls need to know “that they can take risks in that space, that it's safe to learn from each other, to fail in front of each other to pick themselves up and take it as a lesson or a success,” Woods said. “That's really the key to changing the way girls see themselves in these careers and what they can do, so we have to reinforce that STEM will allow them to change the world.”
