International test underscores U.S. academic declines in reading, mathematics, and science, and in comparison to other developed countries.
By Brendan Clarey
Despite an international assessment finding that American students have lost ground in science, reading and math, the United States’ top education official has hailed the scores as a win and pointed to the Biden administration’s investment in pandemic recovery.
The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) scores show U.S. students scored significantly worse on math than in 2018 and declines in all subjects.
Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said Tuesday the nation’s comparative ranking had improved because of the investment in education from the Biden administration.
“Overall, 2022 results are among the lowest ever measured by PISA in mathematics,” the note on the United States assessment reads. “In reading and science, however, results confirm a long-term stability in results.”
The U.S. scored near the OECD average in math, but above it in reading and science. Two-thirds of students reached level two proficiency on the test, meaning “students can interpret and recognize, without direct instructions, how a simple situation can be represented mathematically,” according to the OECD.
“Here’s the bottom line: At an extremely tough time in education, the United States moved up in the world rankings in reading, math, and science – all three categories PISA measures – while, unfortunately, many other countries saw declines,” Cardona said in a statement.
The scores show that American students saw a 13-point performance drop in mathematics compared with scores from 2018. The average drop in math scores for all countries was 15 points and the drop was 10 points in reading, according to the PISA press release. The U.S. dropped one point in reading and three points in science.
“Today’s results are further proof that President Biden’s bold investments, backed by tireless efforts at the Department of Education to support student success and academic recovery, kept the United States in the game,” Cardona said during remarks on Tuesday.
Cardona was quick to compare the United States to other countries. Finland, for example, saw declines as high as 30 points in mathematics, followed by Hong Kong at minus 25 points and Poland at minus 23.
“While we saw even more dramatic declines in math scores in other countries, our math scores are still declining, and they remain stubbornly low,” Cardona said.
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, called the assessment’s collective results an “extraordinary drop.” Weingarten said her union had called for schools to reopen, a claim disputed by pundits and Republican lawmakers.
The scores underscore the nation’s academic declines related to learning lost from shutdowns related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Recent ACT test score data has shown U.S. students have continued to lose ground academically, according to previous reporting from Chalkboard.
After the announcement about the nation’s PISA scores, the Education Department re-announced it had directed $277 million in grants toward learning loss recovery efforts.
“This $277 million in grant awards from the Biden-Harris administration will fund some of the nation’s most promising efforts to raise the bar for academic recovery, excellence, and equity in education,” Cardona said.
The Education Department’s press release did not mention the PISA score declines.
Originally published by Chalkbeat. Republished with permission.
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