US math and reading test scores are at a 25-year low. Trump cut the agency that can provide answers
Illustration: Guardian Design/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreen Illustration: Guardian Design/Getty ImagesDeleted dataUS educationUS math and reading test scores are at a 25-year low. NCES data also helps set US education policy and allocate funding for school districts.But nearly all of the statistical agency’s work was abruptly terminated and its headcount dropped from about 100 to four. These include surveys on the prevalence of guns and violence at middle and high schools and studies on how students are paying for college, former NCES employees say.Trump asked Americans to help him whitewash national parks.
- ▪Illustration: Guardian Design/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreen Illustration: Guardian Design/Getty ImagesDeleted dataUS educationUS math and reading test scores are at a 25-year low.
- ▪NCES data also helps set US education policy and allocate funding for school districts.But nearly all of the statistical agency’s work was abruptly terminated and its headcount dropped from about 100 to four.
- ▪These include surveys on the prevalence of guns and violence at middle and high schools and studies on how students are paying for college, former NCES employees say.Trump asked Americans to help him whitewash national parks.
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| Original publisher | The Guardian — US |
| Canonical URL | https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-interactive/2026/sep/25/student-math-reading-test-scores |
| Publication time | Fri, 25 Sep 2026 15:00:10 GMT |
| Retrieval time | 2026-09-25T15:05:32.058Z |
| Last seen | 2026-09-25T15:05:32.058Z |
| Headline source | Publisher (no WeSearch rewrite) |
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| Commercial reuse | May the content be reused commercially? | Not permitted |
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Illustration: Guardian Design/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreen Illustration: Guardian Design/Getty ImagesDeleted dataUS educationUS math and reading test scores are at a 25-year low. Trump cut the agency that can provide answersNational Center for Education Statistics, which collects critical data to guide policy on learning, was decimated after Doge canceled crucial contractsBuilding power is supported byAbout this contentAmy Qin with graphics by Flávio PessoaFri 25 Sep 2026 11.00 EDTLast modified on Fri 25 Sep 2026 11.01 EDTShareAs reading and math scores fall to their lowest point in the past quarter-century, the US now has fewer tools to understand and develop interventions for this troubling trend.When the Trump administration took a wrecking ball to the Department of Education…
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