EDITORIAL: Nation’s Report Card shows need for school choice

Terrible test scores aren’t inevitable. But maintaining the status quo won’t fix them.

Last week, the National Assessment of Educational Progress released results for eighth-grade science and 12th-grade reading and math. Students took the tests in 2024. These results are called the Nation’s Report Card, and they were abysmal.

In eighth grade science, 38 percent of students were below basic achievement levels. Just 31 percent were proficient. The average achievement was noticeably down since 2019.

A student at a basic achievement level “likely can demonstrate that reproduction is an essential part of population survival,” the Nation’s Report Card explained in its write-up. That’s pretty basic, yet it’s beyond the reach of almost 40 percent of our country’s eighth graders. Students at the proficient level “likely can describe the function of body systems (circulatory, respiratory, digestive),” according to the report.

Seniors struggled, too. They had lower scores compared to when their peers took the test in 2019. When the NAEP reading test was first given in 1992, the average reading score was 292. On the 2024 test, the average had dropped to 283. Notably, students in the 90th percentile actually did slightly better than those in 1992. But scores for other students were lower. In the 10th percentile, the drop was a staggering 25 points. Our nation’s public schools continue to disproportionately fail the lowest-performing students.

Thirty-two percent of seniors scored below the basic level. That means they are unlikely to be able to read a text and find relevant details showing they understood its literal meaning. Just over a third of students registered a proficient score. Those students “likely can connect key details within and across texts and use those details to draw complex inferences about author’s purpose, tone, word choice, and related ideas,” the write-up stated.

“At the NAEP Advanced level, students likely can evaluate the effectiveness of an author’s claims, organization, and selection of ideas and evidence used,” the Nation’s Report Card wrote.

Just 5 percent of 12th graders hit the advanced level. The implications are terrifying.

“The lesson is clear. Success isn’t about how much money we spend, but who controls the money and where that money is invested,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said. “That’s why President Trump and I are committed to returning control of education to the states so they can innovate and meet each school and students’ unique needs.

That’s exactly right. Nevada and the nation need more school choice.