Maine students last year had the lowest average math and reading scores in nearly three decades according to the National Assessment of Educational Progress also known as The Nation's Report Card.
Student scores across the country saw large declines in 2022, but Maine is now one of only 14 states where students are performing significantly below the national average.
Janet Fairman, Co-Director of the Maine Education Policy Research Institute, said one reason for low reading scores may be due to the quality of the reading curriculum used in Maine.
"They've predominantly been using what's now been proven to be ineffective programs that were not aligned with research evidence," said Fairman.
Fairman says schools have started to adopt better quality reading materials but it will take time see results in student reading achievement.
A statement from the Maine department of education cautions against drawing any conclusions based on national data and notes that the 4th graders who took the assessment last year were in kindergarten at the height of the pandemic, making them particularly vulnerable to pandemic-related learning loss.
Fairman said Maine's unique emphasis on localized education policy means some districts may not have access to the same resources as schools in other states.
"It means that we're going to have a high level of variation in educational quality and outcomes across school districts," said Fairman.
The Nation's Report Card is administered every two years to a representative sample of fourth and eighth graders across the country.
