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Delaware’s 2024 NAEP results: 4th‑grade math rises; mixed results and attendance trends prompt targeted focus
Summary
State assessment officials told the State Board of Education that Delaware’s fourth‑grade NAEP math average rose to 233 (up 7 points from 2022) while eighth‑grade changes were small; presenters emphasized the test’s sample design, subgroup trends and falling chronic absenteeism as context for targeting supports.
State assessment leaders briefed the Delaware State Board of Education on Feb. 20 about the state’s 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress results, reporting a statistically significant increase in fourth‑grade math while other measures showed smaller or mixed changes.
"NAEP is the only assessment that measures what students know and can do in various subjects across the country that is actually comparable across jurisdictions," April McCray, director of the Office of Assessment and Accountability, told the board as she explained NAEP’s sampling and reporting rules.
Key findings McCray highlighted for the board: - Grade 4 mathematics: Delaware’s average NAEP scale score was 233 in 2024, up 7 points from 2022; the national public average was 237 (up 2). McCray said Delaware’s NAEP proficient percentages rose by 6% and NAEP advanced increased by 4 percentage points; she reported that about 35% of tested Delaware fourth‑grade students scored at or above 249 on the NAEP scale. - Grade 8 mathematics: The state average was 263, down 1 point from 2022; McCray said that change was not statistically significant and broadly mirrored national trends. - Reading: Fourth‑grade reading rose to an average of 210 (up 2); eighth‑grade reading declined by 4 points since 2022, with achievement‑level percentages largely stable.
McCray emphasized that NAEP is a stratified sample (about 1,700 fourth‑grade students were sampled in Delaware) and is not a census of every student. That sampling design makes NAEP useful for jurisdiction‑to‑jurisdiction comparisons but limits district‑level reporting in the state because Delaware’s districts are relatively small.
The presentation also covered attendance: McCray said chronic absenteeism peaked near 25% in 2022 and has been moving downward in the most recent data; she cited a current chronic‑absenteeism figure in the high teens (about 19.6%), and noted that groups including economically disadvantaged students and students with disabilities show higher absenteeism and larger score declines.
Board members pressed for context about a widely shared report that described Delaware as among states with large learning losses. McCray said that analysis relied on a "linking study" that extrapolated state assessment data onto a NAEP scale; she cautioned that those linked comparisons use different methods and can produce different rankings than direct NAEP samples.
Why it matters: the numbers suggest pockets of progress — notably in fourth‑grade math — but also persistent gaps for vulnerable subgroups and a need to focus on attendance and targeted interventions to sustain gains.
Next steps noted in the meeting: McCray said her office will share disaggregated subgroup data with internal curriculum and professional development teams and with Secretary Martin to inform targeted, school‑level supports.
Sources: April McCray, Director, Office of Assessment and Accountability; discussion recorded at the Feb. 20 State Board meeting.
