NAEP Reading: National Trends and Student Skills

National Trends and Student Skills

National Score Trends

Lower average reading score in 2024 reflected in score declines at all but 90th percentile

Average scores are reported on the NAEP reading scale that ranges from 0 to 500. NAEP scores are also reported at five selected percentiles to show the progress made by lower- (10th and 25th percentiles), middle- (50th percentile), and higher- (75th and 90th percentiles) performing students.

The average reading score for fourth-grade students in 2024 was lower by two points compared to 2022, but was not significantly different in comparison to the first reading assessment in 1992.
Compared to 2022, the 2024 reading scores were lower for fourth-grade students performing at all selected percentiles, except the 90th, where the score for highest-performing students did not differ from 2022.
Compared to 1992, the reading scores for fourth-grade students at the 10th and 25th percentiles were lower in 2024. The score for fourth-graders at the 50th percentile was not significantly different from 1992. Scores for students at the 75th and 90th percentiles were higher in 2024 compared to 1992.

The chart below shows the trends in average reading scores and scores for lower- (10th and 25th percentiles) and higher- (75th and 90th percentiles) performing students beginning in 1992 along with the cut score indicating the lower end of the score range for each NAEP achievement level: NAEP Basic, NAEP Proficient, and NAEP Advanced. Read a description of each NAEP achievement level by clicking the question mark icons. Read more about NAEP achievement levels and how they are set. Please note, NAEP achievement levels are to be used on a trial basis and should be interpreted and used with caution.

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Figure Trend in fourth-grade NAEP reading average and selected percentile scores

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Click on a data point or key for more details. Click again to return to the overview for all categories.

National Achievement-level Trends

Lower percentage of fourth-graders at or above NAEP Proficient in reading compared to 2022

Thirty-one percent of fourth-grade students performed at or above the NAEP Proficient level on the reading assessment in 2024—2 percentage points lower compared to 2022 and not significantly different from 1992, the first reading assessment year.
Sixty percent of fourth-grade students performed at or above the NAEP Basic level in 2024—2 percentage points¹ lower compared to 2022 and not significantly different compared to 1992.
Eight percent of fourth-graders performed at the NAEP Advanced level in 2024, which was not significantly different from 2022 but was higher in comparison to 1992.
Forty percent of fourth-grade students performed in the range of the scale below the NAEP Basic level in 2024, a larger percentage of students compared to 2022 but not significantly different from 1992.

¹ The percentage-point difference cited in this report is based on the difference between unrounded data as opposed to the rounded percentages shown in the graphic.

NAEP achievement levels are performance standards that describe what students should know and be able to do. Results are reported as percentages of students performing at or above three achievement levels (NAEP Basic, NAEP Proficient, and NAEP Advanced). Students performing at or above the NAEP Proficient level on NAEP assessments demonstrate solid academic performance and competency over challenging subject matter. It should be noted that the NAEP Proficient achievement level does not represent grade-level proficiency as determined by other assessment standards (e.g., state or district assessments). NAEP achievement levels are to be used on a trial basis and should be interpreted and used with caution. Find out more about the NAEP reading achievement levels.

NAEP achievement-level setting is based on the judgments of a broadly representative panel of teachers, education specialists, and members of the general public. The authorizing legislation for NAEP requires that the achievement levels be used on a trial basis until the Commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) determines that the achievement levels are reasonable, valid, and informative to the public (20 USC § 9622[e][2][C]). The NCES Commissioner's determination is to be based on a congressionally mandated, rigorous, and independent evaluation. The latest evaluation of the achievement levels was conducted by a committee convened by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in 2016. The evaluation concluded that further evidence should be gathered to determine whether the achievement levels are reasonable, valid, and informative. Accordingly, the NCES Commissioner determined that the trial status of the achievement levels should be maintained at this time. Read more about how NAEP achievement levels are set. In 2018, the National Assessment Governing Board issued a revised Policy Statement clarifying that the NAEP Proficient level is not intended to reflect grade-level performance expectations but is specific to performance on NAEP assessments. Read the Governing Board Policy Statement.

The chart below lists the percentages of fourth-grade students performing at each of the NAEP reading achievement levels in 2024 and previous assessment years. Set the baseline at either NAEP Basic or NAEP Proficient to see the percentages of students performing at or above that NAEP achievement level. Click "Show all achievement levels" to see the percentages of fourth-grade students at each of the NAEP achievement levels. Click "Hide all achievement levels" to see the percentages of students at or above the selected baseline NAEP achievement level. Use the slider to change focal years.

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Baseline

Figure Trend in fourth-grade NAEP reading achievement-level results

NOTE: NAEP achievement levels are to be used on a trial basis and should be interpreted and used with caution. It should be noted that the NAEP Proficient achievement level does not represent grade level proficiency as determined by other assessment standards (e.g., state or district assessments).

National Student Skills

Student performance and skills on reading assessment questions

The NAEP reading assessment measures students’ reading comprehension of literary and informational texts. Students read grade-appropriate texts and answer questions about them that require both literal and interpretive understanding as well as critical thinking skills. The NAEP reading framework guides the content and development of the reading assessment at grades 4, 8, and 12. The 2024 reading assessment at grades 4 and 8 used discrete question sets as well as scenario-based tasks (SBTs). The assessment comprised selected-response and constructed-response questions. All reading assessment questions are classified by one of three NAEP reading cognitive targets. Read more about the NAEP reading assessment.

To illustrate students’ performance on the NAEP reading assessment, a set of publicly released questions from the 2024 assessments at grades 4 and 8 are presented below. The range of skills demonstrated by students on these released questions are shown at different points on the NAEP reading scale and within the score range for each NAEP reading achievement level. Also presented is the percentage of students receiving a full credit for each question in 2024 compared to the percentages on the same questions in the 2022 and 2019 assessments. Click on "show details" for each question to see the question type, cognitive target, and a description of the skills demonstrated by students who responded correctly.

Some fourth-grade students read and responded to a literary SBT that included a short poem by Shel Silverstein and a chapter from The Tale of Despereaux, a novel by Kate DiCamillo. The SBTs in the NAEP reading assessment begin with a specific purpose for reading and conclude with a question that reflects the stated purpose. The questions leading up to the final question are designed to help the students build the understandings that are important to the specific purpose and the final question. In this task, the specific purpose tells students they will answer questions that will help them think about how the message of the poem and the story relate to each other. The final question then asks students to explain how a story character reflects an idea from the poem using details from both texts. In 2024, the percentage of students who received the full credit across the sample questions ranged from 12 percent for a question asking students to select from highlighted text the section that supports an idea from the story to 71 percent for a selected-response question about the reason for a character’s action.

Figure National grade 4 NAEP reading item map in 2024 and percentage of fourth-grade students who received the full credit for the listed sample questions in 2024 and 2022

NOTE: The position of a question on the scale represents the scale score attained by students who had a 65 percent probability of obtaining credit at a specific level of constructed-response questions or polytomously scored selected-response questions, a 74 percent probability of correctly answering a four-option single-selection multiple choice type of selected-response question, or a 72 percent probability of correctly answering a five-option single-selection multiple choice type of selected-response question in certain subjects. For dichotomously scored, non-single-selection multiple-choice type of selected-response questions, the position reflects the scale score for students with a 65 percent probability of obtaining credit, unless evidence indicates a high rate of guessing, in which case the probability is recalculated as for a single-selection multiple-choice question. Selected-response question includes question types such as single-selection multiple choice, matching, grid, zone, and in-line choice. There is no direct relationship between the position of a question on the scale and the percentage of students attaining credit at the associated level in any given assessment year. The percentage differences between the assessment years are based on unrounded numbers as opposed to the rounded numbers shown in the report.

View Student Skills by Jurisdiction

Explore the State and District Profile Tools to see students’ demonstrated reading knowledge and skills on the publicly released assessment questions for individual states/jurisdictions and participating TUDA districts.

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Alabama

Additional NAEP Sample Question Resources

NAEP Questions Tool

See the NAEP Questions Tool to learn more about released reading questions from the 2024 assessment and previous assessment years. See examples of students’ answers to constructed-response questions, scorer comments, and the percentage of students who answered each question correctly.

Detailsfor NAEP Questions Tool

Experience NAEP Assessment Questions

You can try test questions that were administered to students as part of the 2024 reading assessment. After completing the questions, you can see the correct answers, scoring rubrics, and student performance results.

Detailsfor Experience NAEP Assessment Questions

NAEP Item Maps

One way to understand the NAEP reading scale is by seeing the types of questions that students performing at different points on the scale are likely to answer correctly. See the 2024 item map with a range of skills demonstrated on the reading scale and within the score range for each NAEP achievement level.

Detailsfor NAEP Item Maps

NOTE: Beginning with the 2017 assessment, NAEP reading results at grades 4 and 8 are from a digitally based assessment; prior to 2017, results were from a paper-and-pencil-based assessment for grades 4 and 8. For more information, see the About page. The NAEP reading scale ranges from 0 to 500. Accommodations were not permitted in NAEP reading assessments prior to 1998. Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding or the omission of categories. Although the estimates (e.g., average scores or percentages) are shown as rounded numbers, the positions of the data points in the graphics are based on the unrounded numbers. Unrounded numbers were used for calculating the differences between the estimates, and for the statistical comparison test when the estimates were compared to each other. Comparison results are based on a statistical significance level set at .05, with appropriate adjustments for multiple comparisons. Not all apparent differences between estimates are statistically significant.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), various years, 1992–2024 Reading Assessments.

NAEP Report Card: Reading