Houston ISD students notched gains in fourth-grade math but otherwise didn’t show much improvement in 2024 on an exam known as the “Nation’s Report Card.”

The results on the closely watched tests, given every two years to students across the country, has shown some progress in recovering from big drops in math scores following the pandemic. HISD’s reading scores, meanwhile, haven’t budged over the past several years.

HISD narrowed its gaps with state averages, mostly because its scores held steady while scores across Texas slipped. In the four tested areas — fourth- and eighth-grade reading and math — HISD made progress toward, but did not reach, state averages.

The data also show HISD remains in the middle of the pack for large urban districts in the state, generally behind Austin ISD and ahead of Dallas and Fort Worth ISDs. HISD has held that position for several years. The four districts are the only ones in Texas whose results were reported separately from the state’s.

In a video posted Wednesday morning to HISD’s YouTube page, Miles celebrated HISD’s scores, highlighting large gains in reading for Black fourth grade students and eighth grade students with disabilities.

“We’re moving in the right direction while all the other districts are moving in the wrong direction with regard to our subpopulations,” Miles said.

“We still have a long way to go,” he added. “But obviously you can see here that we’ve turned the corner.”

About a quarter-million children across the country, including a randomly selected sample of HISD students, took the exam, more formally known as the National Assessment of Educational Progress, between January and March of 2024. Some researchers consider the test the “gold standard” for measuring what American students know because the questions are developed through a rigorous process and children have been taking the test for over three decades, allowing for comparisons over time.

The last time students sat for the exam was 2022, meaning the results speak to roughly a half-year of Miles’ district leadership and about a year and a half of former Superintendent Millard House’s efforts.

When asked about the HISD numbers during a press conference, Peggy Carr, commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, which administers the exam, pointed out that maintaining flat scores is not sufficient.

“It’s clearly going to take time, so I don’t think celebrating is what I see in these data," Carr said. "Hope is what I see in these data.”

Carr characterized the continued nationwide skid, which HISD largely avoided, as adding insult to injury after historic pandemic dropoffs seen in 2022: “The (2024) Nation’s Report Card is out and the news is not good,” she said.

Zooming in on the numbers

Over the past two years, some HISD students saw their scores improve more than others, the data show.

For example, fourth-grade students listed as “economically disadvantaged” saw gains in both math and reading between 2022 and 2024, while eighth graders in that category saw declines. Only the fourth-grade math bump, however, was statistically significant, meaning researchers determined that change was large enough that it was unlikely to be caused by random chance. The other results were too close to tell.

Broken down by race, the average scores for Black students improved, while the results for Hispanic and white students were mixed. Again, researchers listed only some of the swings as statistically significant.

Across the country, lower-performing students’ scores worsened, on average, while their higher-performing peers’ scores improved in some subjects and grade levels. 

HISD, however, bucked that trend, with fourth graders in the bottom and top quarter improving their reading scores, and no statistically significant changes in fourth grade math or in either eighth grade subject.

In fourth grade, HISD increased the percentage of students scoring at or above the test’s “proficient” level, the middle score out of three possible ratings. The district also decreased the number below the “basic” level, the lowest rating, though the changes were only statistically significant in math, not reading. In eighth grade, progress was flatter in both subjects, with no significant changes.

Fourth graders score at “basic” in math if, for example, they can locate whole numbers on a number line and in reading if they can put events from a story in the proper sequence. Eighth graders reach the basic level in math if, for instance, they show understanding of scientific notation and in reading if they can figure out the meaning of a word based on context.

The tests’ creators stress that scoring “proficient” does not necessarily equate to scoring on grade level, as each state — not the federal government — determines what students should know at each age.

Unless changes are made to the testing program under President Donald Trump’s administration, HISD students will next sit for the exam in 2026, potentially offering a more complete view of Miles’ success or failure in moving the needle forward for students academically.

Correction, Jan. 30: An earlier version of this story contained an inaccurate description of Houston ISD's performance on the National Assessment of Educational Progress over the past several years. HISD has not seen a statistically significant change in its reading scores since 2019, while its fourth grade math scores have rebounded to pre-pandemic levels and eighth grade math scores remain below pre-pandemic levels. Part of a quote attributed to National Center for Education Statistics Commissioner Peggy Carr also has been removed due to an inaccurate characterization of HISD's test scores.

Asher Lehrer-Small covers Houston ISD for the Landing. Find him @by_ash_ls on Instagram and @small_asher on X, or reach him directly at asher@houstonlanding.org.

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