This brief discusses the most recent and historical NAEP data in math, science, reading, and writing. Arkansas’ NAEP results are compared to national and border state averages. Based on the most recent NAEP exams, Arkansas is performing slightly below the national average in reading, math, science, and writing. There is also data to support that Arkansas students perform less well in Grade 8 than in Grade 4 when compared to the national and border state averages. Arkansas, however, is among the highest performing states with regard to change over the last decade. Since 1992, Arkansas has gained on the national and border state averages. In addition, Arkansas’ black-white and Hispanic-white achievement gaps in reading and math are lower than over half of participating states
