Knowledge of U.S. History
Findings and Trends
- From 2001 to 2014, eighth graders’ U.S. history achievement gradually improved, as the share scoring below the basic proficiency level fell below 30% and those scoring at or above proficient rose to 18% in 2014 (Indicator I-05a). From 2014 to 2022, however, history achievement declined substantially. By the latter year, the percentage below basic proficiency had risen to 40%, while the share demonstrating advanced proficiency had dropped to 14%.
- Fourth and 12th graders were most recently assessed in 2010, with the younger students demonstrating greater gains over the preceding nine years (Indicator I-05b). The share of fourth graders demonstrating below basic proficiency declined from over a third of students in 2001 to 27% in 2010. Twelfth graders’ performance on the assessment changed little over the time period. In both 2001 and 2010, a greater proportion of fourth-grade students demonstrated proficiency in U.S. history than did 12th graders.
- In every testing year and at every grade level, a substantial majority of children in the assessed grades failed to demonstrate proficiency in U.S. history. The absence of long-term trend data prevents a systematic evaluation of how recent a phenomenon this is, but research reveals that young people’s ignorance of U.S. history has been a source of public concern since the beginning of the 20th century.
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, , accessed 08/25/2023. Data analyzed and presented by the American Ƶ of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators ().
For an explanation of the achievement scale and detailed information about the competencies associated with each achievement level, see .
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, , accessed 08/25/2023. Data analyzed and presented by the American Ƶ of Arts and Sciences’ Humanities Indicators ().
For an explanation of the achievement scale and detailed information about the competencies associated with each achievement level, see .
Information on this site is meant to be used and shared. Feel free to copy, distribute, and transmit text and images from the Humanities Indicators, with attribution.
