Published: January 13, 2023
If you are concerned about the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on your child’s education (or the education of a child you care about), here is some information designed to help you grasp the depth of the national education challenge we are facing — and what you can do about it.
In September 2022, the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) released its first national report card since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The results were a fire alarm for parents and teachers alike — erasing nearly two decades of academic progress.
Percentage of U.S. students scoring below NAEP “basic” levels
| 2019 | 2022 | |
| Grade 4 Math | 19% | 25% |
| Grade 4 Reading | 34% | 37% |
| Grade 8 Math | 31% | 38% |
| Grade 8 Reading | 27% | 30% |
For a complete list of student performance by state, click here.
Although Colorado was 22 out of 50 in combined test scores for fourth and eighth graders in math and reading, the performance of both fourth and eighth grade students in Colorado decreased significantly after the pandemic.
Percentage Colorado students scoring below NAEP “Basic” levels
| Grade 4 Math | 36% |
| Grade 4 Reading | 38% |
| Grade 8 Math | 28% |
| Grade 8 Reading | 34% |
These numbers quantify what parents and educators in Colorado already knew: After two years of school lockdowns and online learning, our children are less proficient in math and reading and less prepared for the educational journey ahead.
Fortunately, there’s a proven solution to this problem: tutoring.
According to an article in AERA Open (the Journal of the American Educational Research Association), tutoring’s impact on student achievement in both reading and math is greater than:
- Smaller class sizes (lower student/teacher ratios)
- Extended school days
- Extended school years
- Vacation academies
- Summer school
According to the above-mentioned AERA Open article, “Several reviews find that tutoring benefits students at all levels of prior performance … with some evidence of larger effects among lower performing students.”
In other words, tutoring is the most efficient and effective way to help your child (or a child you care about) bridge the pandemic-induced education gap.
For more information about the tutoring programs at Prep Academy Tutors, call us at 720-902-5585, email us at boulder@prepacademytutors.com, or visit our website.