Student Experiences
Absenteeism
Percentage of students missing no days of school not significantly different from 2022
Students who took the long-term trend mathematics assessment were asked “How many days were you absent from school in the last month?” In 2022, the percentage of 9-year-olds who indicated missing no days of school was 45 percent. In 2025, that percentage was 46 percent, which was not significantly different from 2022. In 2004, the first year this question was asked, more than half of 9-year-olds (56 percent) indicated having missed no days in the last month.
Table Trend in percentages of 9-year-old students in NAEP long-term trend mathematics, by number of days student absent from school in a month
| Year | Percentage |
|---|---|
| None | |
| 1 or 2 days | |
| 3 or 4 days | |
| 5 to 10 days | |
| More than 10 days | |
Students missing no days of school scored highest
Nine-year-olds who reported missing no days of school in the previous month scored higher than their peers who reported missing at least 1 day. This relationship between absenteeism and performance in 2025 is not causal, but has been observed in previous long-term trend results.
Figure Average scores and percentages of 9-year-old students in NAEP long-term trend mathematics, by number of days student absent from school in a month: 2025
| Number of days student absent in a month | Percentage of students | Average score |
|---|---|---|
| None | ||
| 1 or 2 days | ||
| 3 or 4 days | ||
| 5 to 10 days | ||
| More than 10 days | ||
Time Spent on Homework (Age 9)
Thirty-nine percent of 9-year-olds indicate being assigned no homework, higher than in 2004
Nine-year-old students who took the long-term trend mathematics assessment were also asked, “How much time did you spend on homework yesterday?” One of the options was to indicate whether homework was assigned at all. In 2025, the percentage indicating that no homework had been assigned the previous day was 39 percent, which was not significantly different from 2022 but higher than all prior years. In 2004, the first year that this question was asked, 24 percent of 9-year-olds indicated that no homework had been assigned the previous day.
Table Trend in percentages of 9-year-old students in NAEP long-term trend mathematics, by how much time students spent on homework the day before they took the NAEP assessment
| Year | Percentage |
|---|---|
| No homework was assigned | |
| Had homework but didn't do it | |
| Less than 1 hour | |
| 1 to 2 hours | |
| More than 2 hours | |
Nine-year-olds who spend less than an hour on homework scored highest
In 2025, students who indicated that they spent less than an hour on homework the previous day scored higher than their peers who were not assigned homework and their peers who were assigned homework but failed to do it. They also scored higher than their peers who spent more time on homework (1 to 2 hours and more than 2 hours).
Figure Average scores and percentages of 9-year-old students in NAEP long-term trend mathematics, by how much time students spent on homework the day before they took the NAEP assessment: 2025
| Time spend on homework | Percentage of students | Average score |
|---|---|---|
| No homework was assigned | ||
| Had homework but didn't do it | ||
| Less than 1 hour | ||
| 1 to 2 hours | ||
| More than 2 hours | ||
Findings from students’ responses to the long-term trend mathematics survey at age 9 and age 13 are presented below. These findings do not imply a causal relationship to performance, but do provide important context for students’ learning experiences.