In 2024, The National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), also known as ‘The Nation’s Report Card’, is a congressionally mandated program overseen and administered by the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), within the U.S. Department of Education. This assessment was administered nationally to students in 4th and 8th grade, specifically designed to evaluate ELA and Math competencies. Over 450,000 students completed the assessment in 2024, providing important information about student academic achievement on a national level.
According to the 2024 NAEP results:
- MATH
- 4th grade: Approximately 39% of 4th graders performed at or above the NAEP Proficient level, while 24% scored below the NAEP Basic level.
- 8th grade: About 28% of 8th graders scored at or above NAEP Proficient, while nearly 40% were below NAEP Basic
- READING
- 4th grade: Approximately 39% of 4th graders performed at or above the NAEP Proficient level, while 24% scored below the NAEP Basic level.
- 8th grade: Just 30% of 8th graders reached or exceeded NAEP Proficient, while 33% scored below NAEP Basic, marking the largest percentage ever recorded in NAEP history.
- See nationsreportcard.gov for more information
How does Epic compare?
At ECA we use two assessment tools to help us evaluate student academic growth: the STAR benchmark (which we administer 4-5 times annually), and at the end of year, Iowa Standardized Test. In 2024 over 3 million students nationwide took the Iowa.
What is the IOWA Standardized Assessment?
The Iowa Standardized Test measures student achievement and growth across a continuum of learning standards. These assessments measure student achievement in reading, language, math, science, and social studies.
Explanation of Key Terms
GE: Grade Equivalent: The class’s average standard score in a subject area converted to a grade equivalent score. The GE score identifies where a student’s achievement is on a continuum. It is a decimal number; the first number represents the grade level and the second number indicates the month in school.
NS: National Stanine: The class’s average standard score in a subject area converted to a normalized standard score that indicates the group’s status or relative rank of achievement on a bell curve. (1,2,3 = below average; 4,5,6 = average; 7,8,9 = above average.)
Here are our 4th and 8th grade results by year comparingly:
Epic Christian Academy Iowa Scores: 4th Grade
| Reading | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Number of Students Tested | (GE) Grade Equivalent | (NS) National Stanine |
| 2024 | 3 | 6.6 | 7- above average |
| 2023 | 2 | 7.2 | 7 |
| 2022 | 2 | 6.4 | 7 |
| ELA | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Number of Students Tested | (GE) Grade Equivalent | (NS) National Stanine |
| 2024 | 3 | 7.0 | 7- above average |
| 2023 | 2 | 6.9 | 7 |
| 2022 | 2 | 6.0 | 6 |
| Math | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Number of Students Tested | (GE) Grade Equivalent | (NS) National Stanine |
| 2024 | 3 | 6.8 | 7- above average |
| 2023 | 2 | 7.5 | 8 |
| 2022 | 2 | 5.4 | 6 |
Epic Christian Academy Iowa Scores: 8th Grade
| Reading | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Number of Students Tested | (GE) Grade Equivalent | (NS) National Stanine |
| 2024 | 1 | 7.9 | 4 |
| 2023 | 8 | 13+ | 7 |
| 2022 | 4 | 13+ | 8 |
| ELA | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Number of Students Tested | (GE) Grade Equivalent | (NS) National Stanine |
| 2024 | 1 | 8.0 | 5 |
| 2023 | 8 | 13+ | 7 |
| 2022 | 4 | 13+ | 8 |
| Math | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Number of Students Tested | (GE) Grade Equivalent | (NS) National Stanine |
| 2024 | 1 | 13+ | 7- above average |
| 2023 | 8 | 13+ | 7 |
| 2022 | 4 | 13+ | 8 |