Press Release
February 11, 2025
Contact: Sam Stockwell
samuel_stockwell@gse.harvard.edu
617.495.0342
West Virginia Ranked 22nd in Math Recovery and 42nd in Reading Between 2019 and 2024
However, the state saw a stronger recovery effort from 2022 onwards as they ranked 6th in growth for math and 11th in growth for reading from 2022-2024.
A sharp rise in chronic absenteeism (students missing more than 10% of a school year) from 20% of students in 2019 before the pandemic to 29% in 2022 (down to 24% in 2024) is slowing the recovery in many districts in West Virginia.
(February 11, 2025) In its third year of reporting on the pace of academic recovery measures in districts nationwide, the Education Recovery Scorecard (a collaboration between the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University and The Educational Opportunity Project at Stanford University) is issuing its annual report on district-level student growth in math and reading.
The latest report also provides the first high resolution picture of where West Virginia students’ academic recovery stood in Spring 2024, just before federal relief dollars expired in September. While the National Assessment of Educational Progress described changes in average achievement by state, we combine those scores with district scores on state assessments to describe the change in local communities throughout West Virginia. Here’s what we found:
- West Virginia ranked 22nd among states in terms of recovery in math and 42nd in reading between 2019 and 2024, but saw a stronger recovery effort from 2022 onwards as they ranked 6th in growth for math and 11th in growth for reading from 2022-2024.
- Average student achievement in West Virginia remains almost half a grade level below 2019 levels in math (.45 grade equivalents) and almost three-quarters of a grade level below in reading (.74 grade equivalents). In other words, the loss in math achievement in West Virginia is equivalent to 45 percent of the progress students typically make annually between grades 4 through grade 8.
- The average student in some districts, such as Logan, remains more than full grade equivalent or more below their 2019 mean achievement in math.
- Still, there are bright spots: mean achievement for students in Raleigh, Marshall, Ohio, and Putnam has surpassed 2019 levels math.
- A sharp rise in chronic absenteeism (students missing more than 10 percent of a school year) from 20 percent of students in 2019 before the pandemic to 29 percent in 2022 (down to 24 percent in 2024) is slowing the recovery in many districts in West Virginia.
- West Virginia received $1.2 billion in federal pandemic relief for K-12 schools—or roughly $4,400 per student (which is more than the national average of $3,700 per student.) Nationally, our analysis suggests that the dollars did contribute to the academic recovery, especially when targeted at academic catch-up efforts such as summer learning and tutoring.
The federal pandemic relief dollars may be gone, but the pandemic’s impact lingers in many West Virginia schools. Even without federal relief dollars, states could be targeting continuing federal Title I dollars and state dollars to implement interventions which have been shown effective, such as tutoring and summer learning. State leaders, mayors, employers and other community leaders should join schools to redouble efforts on the shared challenge of reducing student absenteeism.
One of the project leaders, Professor Tom Kane from Harvard, said: “Unless state and local leaders step up now, the achievement losses will be the longest lasting– and most inequitable– legacy of the pandemic.”
For the national press release and findings click here.
About the Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University
The Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard University, based at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, seeks to transform education through quality research and evidence. CEPR and its partners believe all students will learn and thrive when education leaders make decisions using facts and findings, rather than untested assumptions. Learn more at cepr.harvard.edu.
Contact: Sam Stockwell, samuel_stockwell@gse.harvard.edu, (617) 495-0342