NAEP Long-Term Trend Assessment Results:
Reading and Mathematics

Reporting mathematics performance-level results

Long-term trend performance levels describe the range of mathematics skills demonstrated by students when responding to assessment questions. Results are reported in terms of the percentages of students attaining each performance level. Changes in the percentages at or above each performance level reflect changes in the proportion of students who demonstrated the knowledge and skills associated with that level.

The five performance levels are applicable at all three age groups (age 9, age 13, and age 17); however, the likelihood of attaining higher performance levels is related to a student's age. The performance-level results presented for each age are those that are most likely to show significant change across the assessment years. For this reason, only three performance levels are discussed for each age. For age 9, performance-level results are presented for at or above 150, 200, and 250. Read more about the setting of long-term trend performance levels.

See all NAEP LTT mathematics performance-level descriptions.

Compared to 2012, lower percentage of 9-year-olds performing at or above level 200

Compared to 1978, higher percentages of 9-year-old students performed at or above each of the three performance levels reported for that age. The percentage of 9-year-old students performing at or above 150 was 2 percentage points higher than in 1978. The percentages of students performing at or above 200 and at or above 250 increased during the same time period by 16 percentage points and 25 percentage points, respectively. Compared to 2012, the percentage of 9-year-olds performing at or above 200 decreased by 2 percentage points.

What 9-year-olds know and can do in mathematics

The item map below illustrates a range of mathematical skills associated with scores on the long-term trend mathematics scale. Cut scores for the three performance levels reported at age 9 are highlighted in boxes on the scale. The descriptions of selected assessment questions indicate what students need to do to receive credit for a correct answer. For example, 9-year-olds with a score of 225 were likely to be able to identify a symmetric shape. Nine-year-olds with a score of 259 were likely to be able to solve an application problem involving multiple operations.