(NewsNation) — New numbers show students across the country are not making the grade when it comes to math.
The Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) released their data analyzing test scores of 15-year-old students from 37 countries across the globe. The study’s primary focus was reading, math and science scores.
The results reflect percentages of learning losses that are notable. According to the study, the U.S. now ranks sixth in reading, twelfth in science and 28th in math.
The math scores of U.S. students fell 13 points since the last time the assessment was administered. Other countries saw a decline of 15 points on average.
When it comes to reading, other countries included in the study saw a decline of 10 points on average, while American statistics dropped by one point. Scores in science were relatively flat across the board, showing the U.S. falling behind two points.
NewsNation reached out to the U.S. Department of Education to see how Secretary Miguel Cardona reacted to the study.
A statement from Cardona says, in part: “If President Biden hadn’t fought for the single largest investment in education in our nation’s history, we’d be in the same boat as other countries who didn’t make those investments and saw their rankings fall.”
Other education experts NewsNation spoke with say the COVID-19 pandemic cannot be blamed for the overall decline since the study examines scores between 2018 and 2022.