Press Release

February 11, 2025

Contact: Sam Stockwell
samuel_stockwell@gse.harvard.edu
617.495.0342

Louisiana Ranked 2nd Among States in Math Recovery and 1st in Reading Between 2019 and 2024

Between 2019 and 2024, students in Louisiana gained an average of .02 grade equivalents in math and .28 in reading at a time when many states continued to fall further behind.

Chronic absenteeism has risen sharply in Louisiana, from 18% of students in 2019 to 25% in 2024, significantly slowing recovery efforts in some districts.

(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 Louisiana 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 Louisiana. Here’s what we found:

• Louisiana ranked 2nd among states in terms of recovery in math, behind only Alabama, and 1st in reading between 2019 and 2024.
• Between 2019 and 2024, students in Louisiana gained an average of .02 grade equivalents in math and .28 in reading at a time when many states continued to fall further behind. Louisiana is the only state where the average student has completed their recovery.
• Yet even in Louisiana, 46 percent of students are in districts whose average math achievement in 2024 remained below their own 2019 levels and 25 percent are in districts that remain behind in reading. The average student in some districts, such as Jefferson, Vernon, East Baton Rouge, and St. Landry, remains more than a quarter of a grade equivalent below their 2019 mean achievement in math. The average student in Vernon and Tangipahoa remains over a quarter of a grade equivalent below 2019 levels in reading.
• Still, there are many bright spots: mean achievement for students in districts including St. Tammany, Ascension, Ouachita, Caddo, Acadia, Rapides, Terrebonne, Lafayette, Lafourche, Calcasieu, and St. Charles have surpassed 2019 levels in math by as much as half a grade level. Many districts have surpassed 2019 levels in reading, and some districts such as Lafayette and Terrebonne are now scoring 75 percent or more of a grade equivalent above their 2019 means in reading.
• A sharp rise in chronic absenteeism (students missing more than 10 percent of a school year) from 18 percent of students in 2019 before the pandemic to 25 percent in 2024 is slowing the recovery in many districts in Louisiana.
• Louisiana received $4 billion in federal pandemic relief for K-12 schools—or roughly $5,700 per student—which is more than the national average of $3700 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 Louisiana 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, economist Tom Kane at Harvard, said: “Lowering absenteeism generates tremendous bang-for-the-buck.  Regular attendance benefits the student as well as her classmates.  And taxpayers are paying for the seat whether it’s occupied or not.”

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