WHAT DOES THIS MEAN? The National Assessment of Educational Progress' "Report Card" of vocabulary results found no significant changes from 2009 to 2011. The average scores (out of a possible 500) for fourth graders barely changed from 219 to 218, while those for eighth graders remained the same at 265. (Mother Jones reminds us that this does not mean that students only knew half of what they're expected to.) The report also affirmed a tight-knit relationship between vocabulary and reading comprehension: students above the 75th percentile in reading also had the highest average vocabulary store, and a similar correlation held true for low-performing students at the 25th percent. Further analyses of these scores according to gender, race, and states offer those interested in such trends a treasure trove of data to explore further.
