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National Reading Scores Show Limited Recovery From Pre-Pandemic Levels
An analysis of state test scores from more than 5,000 school districts in 38 states found that only five states and the District of Columbia recorded meaningful growth in reading from 2022 to 2025. Nationally, students remain nearly half a grade level behind pre-pandemic reading scores.
May 13, 12:59 PM·3m read1 source
New York PostAudio version
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Scholars at Harvard, Stanford and Dartmouth analyzed state test scores from third to eighth grade for over 5,000 school districts in 38 states. The resulting national Education Scorecard allows comparisons across districts and states. The analysis found that only five states plus the District of Columbia had meaningful growth in reading test scores from 2022 to 2025.
Nationally, students remain nearly half a grade level behind pre-pandemic reading scores and only slightly better in math. Reading test scores have been falling since 2013 for eighth graders and 2015 for fourth graders, according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress.
Thomas Kane, a Harvard professor who helped create the Education Scorecard, said the pandemic was the mudslide that had followed seven years of steady erosion in achievement.
Some states and school districts have made progress by shifting toward phonics-based instruction and providing extra support for struggling readers. Almost every state in the analysis saw improvements in math test scores from 2022 to 2025, and student absenteeism declined in most states.
More than 400 school districts, including Modesto, California, showed reading or math growth that outpaced demographically similar districts in the same state. In Modesto, the district revamped reading instruction during the pandemic and math instruction earlier.
It created a new department to help students learning English and paid educators $5,000 to complete the LETRS science-of-reading training program. Modesto’s test scores grew enough to represent an extra 18 weeks of learning in math and 13 weeks in reading.
