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Math Trends

How have math outcomes in grades 1-8 changed over time?

• Start by selecting All Grades (1-8). Notice that there was a substantial drop in the percentage of students scoring on grade level from 2018-18 to 2021-21 (58% to 47%), followed by a slight increase in 2021-22 (47% to 48%).

How do math outcomes vary across grade levels?

• Next, dive into specific grade levels to see which showed more improvement than others following the beginning of the pandemic.
• For example, we see that the proportion of on-grade-level students in early elementary grades (1-2) increased by 2 percentage points (48% to 50%), while the proportion of on-grade-level students in middle grades (6-8) remained the same (38%).

Connections

• How do these trends compare to student learning patterns in your own classroom, school, or district? Where do you think trends are headed in the future?
• What about these trends is surprising to you? What aligns with your expectations? Share your thoughts with us.

Reading Trends

How have reading outcomes in grades 1-8 changed over time?

• Start by selecting All Grades (1-8). Notice that there was a drop in the percentage of students scoring on grade level from 2018-18 to 2021-21 (56% to 51%), followed by a slight increase in 2021-22 (51% to 52%).

How do reading outcomes vary across grade levels?

• Next, dive into specific grade levels to see which showed more improvement than others following the beginning of the pandemic.
• For example, we see that the proportion of on-grade-level students in early elementary grades (1-2) increased by 2 percentage points (55% to 57%), while the proportion of on-grade-level students in middle grades (6-8) only increased one percentage point (43% to 44%).

Connections

• How do these trends compare to student learning patterns in your own classroom, school, or district? Where do you think trends are headed in the future?
• What about these trends is surprising to you? What aligns with your expectations? Share your thoughts with us.

Comparisons by School Characteristics

How do math and reading outcomes in grades 1-8 vary across school settings?

• Start by selecting Reading, % FRL, 2016-17, and All Grades (1-8). Here we see that 70% of students in schools with the lowest poverty levels scored on grade level while just 37% of students in schools with the highest poverty levels scored on grade level.
• Now select Math and notice how the percentage of students on grade level in each of these groups decreases.

Specifically, what is the relationship between school poverty level or racial/ethnic composition and student learning?

• Continue exploring by selecting other combinations of subject, school characteristic, year, and grade. In all cases, schools with the highest poverty levels (%FRL) and most students of color (%SoC) have the fewest students who meet grade level expectations.

Connections

• Do these findings surprise you or confirm what you expected? What strategies might be implemented to ensure that schools serving students in poverty and students of color can make more rapid learning gains?
• What about these trends is surprising to you? What aligns with your expectations? Share your thoughts with us.

Math & Reading Domains

How do math and reading outcomes in grades 1-8 vary by domain?

• Going beyond general math and reading performance, domains allow us to see how students are doing in particular areas. For example, by selecting 2016-17, Math, and All Students (1-8), we see that fewer students were on grade level in Geometry than other math domains (55% vs. 60-61%).
• Next, explore how these values vary across grade levels. Select Grade 5 and notice how the values shift. Among fifth grade students in 2016-2017, students were least likely to be on grade level in Algebra & Algebraic Thinking (54%). Yet for first grade students in this same school year, Algebra and Algebraic Thinking was an area of strength, with 72% of students on grade level.
• Lastly, notice how the proportion of students meeting grade level expectations in Algebra and Algebraic Thinking has declined since the beginning of the pandemic. While 60-61% of students in all grades (1-8) were on grade level in this domain prior to the pandemic, this percentage decreased to 51-52% after the pandemic began.

Connections

• How do these trends compare to student learning patterns in your own classroom, school, or district? Where do you think student learning is headed in the future?
• What about these trends is surprising to you? What aligns with your expectations? Share your thoughts with us.