The results of the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) are in, and the findings are, in a word, heartbreaking. This assessment serves as the nation’s report card, indicating how our students are performing in key subject areas, including reading and math. I have raised three children, and report card day has always been important. It tells our children how they are doing, what we can celebrate, and where we need to focus for improvement. At Reading Is Fundamental (RIF), this release day is highly anticipated as well. In January, we learned that reading performance has declined for both 4th and 8th grade students to historic lows. We learned that our nation is failing our children and that we have to do everything in our power to change this downward trend, invest in our children, and put them on a path to read and succeed.
I wish there was something to celebrate in these results, but there are some truly challenging statistics to grapple with in the data:
- 69% of 4th grade students are not reading at a proficient level, and in 8th grade, that number increases to 70%.
- The percentage of 8th-grade students reading below the basic level was the largest in NAEP history, and the percentage of 4th-grade students was the largest in 20 years.
If children are reading below a basic level, it means their opportunities are extremely limited. If they are not learning to read by 4th grade, they cannot read to learn in middle school and beyond. When so many of our children are not reading at a proficient level, their ability to succeed in school and thrive in society is hampered significantly. Reading is a fundamental right and a basic need, and these results are a call to action.
As the leading voice for children’s literacy in this country, Reading Is Fundamental is calling on you to join us as we fight to ensure that every child has the opportunities that reading provides. We must come together to create a culture of reading in communities and homes nationwide. We must invest in a sustainable future for every child in this country by ensuring they can read.
Here is how you can help:
- Donate to RIF. You can give directly through RIF’s site or designate RIF as your charity of choice for the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) workplace giving program. Federal employees and retirees can support RIF through the CFC using CFC # 10948.
- Stay informed about the nation’s literacy crisis and the research-backed programs and content RIF provides as part of the solution.
- Fundraise for RIF. Have a book club? Turn your passion for books into a strategy to put more books in the hands of children who need them most. Learn more here.
Together, we can create a nation of skilled readers and ensure that all children are on a path to read and succeed.
Signed,
Alicia Levi, President & CEO, Reading Is Fundamental
ABOUT RIF:
Reading Is Fundamental (RIF) is committed to creating a nation of lifelong readers by inspiring the joy of reading among all children, putting them on the path to becoming skilled readers. We provide free, high-quality content to engage children, educators, families, and literacy advocates in the solution to the U.S. literacy crisis—so that every child has the fundamentals for success. As the nation’s leading children’s literacy nonprofit, RIF has provided nearly 430 million books and reading resources to over 212 million children since 1966, impacting generations of children. Explore our results and learn more about partnering with us at RIF.org.
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