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| 2023 Tables and Figures | All Years of Tables and Figures | Most Recent Full Issue of the Digest |
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| [Standard errors appear in parentheses] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Amount of reading for school and for fun, time spent on homework and watching TV/video | 9-year-olds | 13-year-olds | 17-year-olds | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1984 | 1994 | 1999 | 2008 | 2012 | 2020 | 2022 | 1984 | 1994 | 1999 | 2008 | 2012 | 2020 | 2023 | 1984 | 1994 | 1999 | 2008 | 2012 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Average scale score1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pages read daily in school and for homework | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 5 or fewer | 208 | (0.9) | 203 | (2.3) | 202 | (1.8) | 210 | (1.1) | 207 | (1.1) | 210 | (1.1) | 207 | (1.4) | 250 | (0.8) | 249 | (1.7) | 249 | (2.0) | 250 | (1.2) | 251 | (1.8) | 253 | (1.1) | 248 | (1.1) | 273 | (0.8) | 271 | (1.9) | 273 | (2.7) | 271 | (1.3) | 274 | (1.1) |
| 6-10 | 215 | (1.0) | 214 | (1.7) | 212 | (1.7) | 219 | (1.3) | 219 | (1.5) | 218 | (1.6) | 210 | (1.5) | 261 | (0.6) | 261 | (1.4) | 262 | (1.7) | 258 | (1.2) | 261 | (1.5) | 259 | (1.1) | 256 | (1.3) | 287 | (0.9) | 284 | (2.1) | 285 | (1.7) | 284 | (1.4) | 283 | (1.2) |
| 11-15 | 220 | (1.4) | 217 | (2.3) | 221 | (2.4) | 224 | (1.4) | 225 | (1.3) | 224 | (1.9) | 218 | (2.0) | 264 | (1.0) | 266 | (1.8) | 263 | (2.1) | 263 | (1.1) | 266 | (1.8) | 263 | (1.5) | 263 | (1.3) | 294 | (0.9) | 288 | (1.9) | 292 | (2.1) | 290 | (1.6) | 289 | (1.5) |
| 16-20 | 215 | (1.4) | 209 | (2.9) | 214 | (2.0) | 225 | (1.5) | 226 | (1.2) | 227 | (1.5) | 221 | (1.9) | 263 | (1.1) | 263 | (2.3) | 264 | (2.6) | 267 | (1.6) | 268 | (1.8) | 268 | (1.6) | 265 | (2.0) | 296 | (1.1) | 298 | (2.8) | 292 | (2.9) | 296 | (1.5) | 297 | (1.5) |
| More than 20 | 215 | (1.6) | 217 | (2.4) | 217 | (2.1) | 226 | (1.2) | 227 | (1.0) | 228 | (1.5) | 225 | (1.5) | 261 | (1.5) | 261 | (2.0) | 265 | (2.0) | 267 | (1.4) | 271 | (1.3) | 270 | (1.4) | 265 | (2.3) | 300 | (1.2) | 304 | (2.2) | 302 | (1.9) | 303 | (1.3) | 301 | (1.5) |
Frequency of reading for fun | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Almost every day | 214 | (1.1) | 215 | (2.3) | 215 | (2.4) | 225 | (1.2) | 226 | (0.9) | 226 | (1.0) | 222 | (1.4) | 264 | (1.4) | 272 | (3.2) | 272 | (3.2) | 274 | (1.4) | 276 | (1.4) | 278 | (1.6) | 275 | (1.8) | 297 | (1.5) | 302 | (4.2) | 301 | (4.9) | 302 | (1.3) | 302 | (1.3) |
| Once or twice a week | 212 | (1.7) | 214 | (3.1) | 215 | (2.6) | 225 | (1.3) | 226 | (0.9) | 227 | (1.1) | 221 | (1.3) | 255 | (1.4) | 255 | (3.1) | 263 | (3.2) | 264 | (1.1) | 267 | (1.4) | 265 | (1.3) | 262 | (1.4) | 290 | (1.7) | 286 | (4.1) | 289 | (2.9) | 291 | (1.7) | 294 | (1.4) |
| Once or twice a month | 204 | (3.3) | 213 | (5.8) | 211 | (4.2) | 221 | (1.7) | 219 | (2.0) | 223 | (1.6) | 221 | (2.3) | 255 | (2.1) | 255 | (5.7) | 260 | (3.7) | 261 | (1.3) | 264 | (1.7) | 266 | (1.1) | 262 | (1.3) | 290 | (1.8) | 286 | (4.5) | 286 | (4.8) | 288 | (1.3) | 288 | (1.5) |
| A few times a year | 197 | (4.2) | ‡ | (†) | ‡ | (†) | 212 | (2.0) | 211 | (1.9) | 216 | (1.7) | 215 | (1.7) | 252 | (3.6) | 252 | (5.4) | 253 | (4.4) | 254 | (1.3) | 258 | (1.6) | 256 | (1.2) | 254 | (1.6) | 279 | (2.7) | 281 | (8.2) | 283 | (4.4) | 287 | (1.5) | 288 | (1.3) |
| Never or hardly ever | 198 | (2.7) | 193 | (3.9) | 195 | (3.3) | 211 | (1.2) | 208 | (1.9) | 208 | (1.5) | 203 | (1.9) | 239 | (2.5) | 237 | (5.1) | 242 | (5.3) | 247 | (0.9) | 249 | (1.3) | 250 | (0.9) | 246 | (1.0) | 269 | (2.4) | 258 | (5.2) | 262 | (5.0) | 269 | (1.1) | 272 | (1.4) |
Time spent on homework yesterday | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No homework assigned | 212 | (1.0) | 213 | (2.0) | 210 | (1.9) | 219 | (1.7) | 219 | (1.6) | 218 | (1.4) | 213 | (1.5) | 254 | (1.0) | 250 | (1.7) | 251 | (2.0) | 251 | (1.2) | 254 | (1.4) | 252 | (1.0) | 251 | (1.1) | 276 | (0.8) | 273 | (2.3) | 275 | (2.3) | 272 | (1.3) | 273 | (1.2) |
| Didn't do assignment | 199 | (2.3) | 200 | (4.3) | 204 | (4.4) | 201 | (2.6) | 206 | (2.7) | 210 | (2.2) | 203 | (2.8) | 247 | (1.7) | 243 | (5.6) | 249 | (4.2) | 242 | (2.4) | 249 | (2.4) | 250 | (1.9) | 251 | (1.7) | 287 | (1.4) | 285 | (2.1) | 282 | (3.1) | 284 | (1.7) | 283 | (2.0) |
| Less than 1 hour | 217 | (0.8) | 212 | (1.4) | 214 | (1.5) | 223 | (0.9) | 224 | (0.8) | 226 | (1.0) | 224 | (1.2) | 261 | (0.6) | 261 | (1.3) | 262 | (1.2) | 260 | (0.9) | 263 | (1.0) | 263 | (1.1) | 259 | (1.3) | 290 | (0.9) | 288 | (1.6) | 291 | (2.3) | 288 | (1.1) | 286 | (1.1) |
| 1 to 2 hours | 216 | (1.4) | 214 | (3.0) | 215 | (3.2) | 222 | (1.6) | 222 | (1.4) | 218 | (2.1) | 207 | (2.7) | 267 | (0.8) | 268 | (1.7) | 269 | (1.6) | 269 | (1.2) | 271 | (1.5) | 269 | (1.2) | 262 | (1.8) | 296 | (0.8) | 297 | (1.7) | 296 | (2.0) | 295 | (1.1) | 294 | (1.4) |
| More than 2 hours | 201 | (1.9) | 193 | (6.1) | 197 | (3.5) | 207 | (3.1) | 200 | (3.4) | 192 | (3.8) | 186 | (3.7) | 264 | (1.2) | 270 | (2.4) | 269 | (3.0) | 277 | (1.9) | 274 | (2.4) | 274 | (1.9) | 268 | (2.8) | 303 | (1.4) | 306 | (3.1) | 300 | (2.8) | 306 | (2.2) | 309 | (1.5) |
TV/video watched on school day | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| None | 212 | (3.4) | 212 | (4.8) | 221 | (4.6) | 223 | (3.0) | 222 | (3.1) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 264 | (2.7) | 270 | (5.1) | 265 | (6.0) | 267 | (3.0) | 276 | (3.5) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 300 | (1.6) | 308 | (3.4) | 300 | (2.8) | 292 | (2.4) | 292 | (2.5) |
| 1 hour or less | 217 | (1.5) | 216 | (1.8) | 218 | (2.1) | 225 | (1.2) | 229 | (1.2) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 269 | (1.1) | 270 | (1.5) | 270 | (1.6) | 266 | (1.2) | 269 | (1.2) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 300 | (1.2) | 299 | (2.0) | 298 | (2.0) | 293 | (1.2) | 292 | (1.3) |
| 2 hours | 222 | (1.1) | 219 | (2.1) | 221 | (1.7) | 229 | (1.1) | 227 | (1.1) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 268 | (0.8) | 268 | (1.4) | 268 | (1.6) | 266 | (1.1) | 266 | (1.5) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 295 | (0.9) | 292 | (1.8) | 292 | (2.1) | 290 | (1.1) | 290 | (1.3) |
| 3 hours | 220 | (1.2) | 218 | (2.2) | 218 | (2.3) | 227 | (1.3) | 226 | (1.4) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 264 | (0.7) | 262 | (1.4) | 263 | (1.5) | 262 | (1.3) | 261 | (1.5) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 288 | (1.0) | 284 | (2.0) | 282 | (2.3) | 284 | (1.3) | 284 | (1.2) |
| 4 hours | 219 | (1.0) | 212 | (1.8) | 214 | (2.4) | 223 | (1.4) | 224 | (1.4) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 262 | (0.9) | 254 | (2.2) | 254 | (2.4) | 255 | (1.5) | 259 | (1.5) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 284 | (1.0) | 276 | (4.1) | 273 | (2.2) | 276 | (2.3) | 277 | (2.1) |
| 5 hours | 214 | (1.4) | 209 | (2.7) | 208 | (3.0) | 219 | (2.2) | 213 | (2.1) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 257 | (1.0) | 250 | (3.0) | 253 | (3.2) | 255 | (2.6) | 255 | (2.1) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 277 | (1.5) | 269 | (4.0) | 275 | (3.8) | 273 | (2.4) | 275 | (3.9) |
| 6 hours or more | 199 | (0.8) | 192 | (2.7) | 191 | (1.7) | 205 | (1.2) | 205 | (1.2) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 245 | (1.0) | 234 | (3.1) | 238 | (1.8) | 238 | (1.4) | 241 | (1.4) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 269 | (1.5) | 256 | (3.7) | 256 | (5.2) | 256 | (2.3) | 261 | (2.6) |
| Percentage distribution | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pages read daily in school | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| and for homework | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 5 or fewer | 36 | (0.8) | 28 | (1.4) | 28 | (1.4) | 25 | (0.9) | 22 | (0.7) | 30 | (1.0) | 32 | (0.9) | 27 | (0.7) | 26 | (0.9) | 23 | (1.0) | 26 | (0.8) | 23 | (0.8) | 32 | (0.9) | 35 | (1.0) | 21 | (0.8) | 21 | (1.2) | 23 | (1.4) | 30 | (0.9) | 29 | (0.7) |
| 6-10 | 25 | (0.4) | 26 | (0.6) | 24 | (0.9) | 20 | (0.5) | 17 | (0.6) | 17 | (0.6) | 19 | (0.6) | 34 | (0.5) | 31 | (0.9) | 31 | (1.1) | 24 | (0.6) | 22 | (0.8) | 22 | (0.5) | 23 | (0.6) | 26 | (0.6) | 25 | (0.9) | 24 | (0.8) | 23 | (0.5) | 22 | (0.6) |
| 11-15 | 14 | (0.4) | 14 | (0.5) | 15 | (0.7) | 14 | (0.5) | 12 | (0.4) | 11 | (0.4) | 10 | (0.4) | 18 | (0.4) | 17 | (0.6) | 18 | (0.8) | 17 | (0.5) | 17 | (0.5) | 16 | (0.4) | 16 | (0.5) | 18 | (0.3) | 18 | (0.6) | 17 | (0.6) | 16 | (0.5) | 15 | (0.4) |
| 16-20 | 13 | (0.4) | 14 | (0.9) | 14 | (0.7) | 14 | (0.6) | 15 | (0.6) | 13 | (0.5) | 13 | (0.5) | 11 | (0.2) | 13 | (0.5) | 13 | (0.7) | 13 | (0.4) | 14 | (0.5) | 12 | (0.5) | 13 | (0.6) | 14 | (0.5) | 13 | (0.6) | 14 | (0.8) | 12 | (0.4) | 12 | (0.5) |
| More than 20 | 13 | (0.5) | 17 | (1.0) | 19 | (1.0) | 28 | (0.8) | 34 | (1.1) | 28 | (1.0) | 26 | (0.9) | 11 | (0.5) | 14 | (0.8) | 16 | (1.0) | 22 | (0.9) | 24 | (1.1) | 18 | (0.7) | 14 | (0.7) | 21 | (0.9) | 23 | (1.5) | 22 | (1.2) | 19 | (0.7) | 22 | (0.7) |
Frequency of reading for fun | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Almost every day | 53 | (1.0) | 58 | (1.6) | 54 | (1.7) | 48 | (0.7) | 53 | (0.8) | 42 | (0.8) | 39 | (0.8) | 35 | (1.0) | 32 | (1.8) | 28 | (1.7) | 26 | (0.7) | 27 | (0.7) | 17 | (0.5) | 14 | (0.6) | 31 | (0.8) | 30 | (2.6) | 25 | (1.7) | 20 | (0.6) | 19 | (0.6) |
| Once or twice a week | 28 | (0.8) | 25 | (1.5) | 25 | (1.5) | 23 | (0.6) | 23 | (0.6) | 25 | (0.7) | 25 | (0.6) | 35 | (1.2) | 32 | (2.1) | 36 | (1.6) | 25 | (0.6) | 26 | (0.6) | 23 | (0.5) | 22 | (0.7) | 33 | (1.1) | 31 | (1.9) | 28 | (2.7) | 22 | (0.5) | 21 | (0.6) |
| Once or twice a month | 7 | (0.6) | 5 | (0.6) | 6 | (0.6) | 8 | (0.3) | 7 | (0.4) | 9 | (0.4) | 10 | (0.4) | 14 | (0.8) | 14 | (1.7) | 17 | (1.6) | 13 | (0.4) | 14 | (0.4) | 16 | (0.4) | 17 | (0.5) | 17 | (0.5) | 15 | (1.5) | 19 | (1.7) | 17 | (0.5) | 16 | (0.4) |
| A few times a year | 3 | (0.3) | 3 | (0.6) | 4 | (0.7) | 8 | (0.4) | 7 | (0.3) | 8 | (0.4) | 9 | (0.4) | 7 | (0.5) | 10 | (1.2) | 10 | (1.1) | 12 | (0.4) | 11 | (0.4) | 15 | (0.5) | 16 | (0.5) | 10 | (0.5) | 12 | (1.5) | 12 | (1.4) | 16 | (0.5) | 18 | (0.6) |
| Never or hardly ever | 9 | (0.5) | 9 | (0.8) | 10 | (0.8) | 14 | (0.6) | 11 | (0.4) | 16 | (0.6) | 16 | (0.6) | 8 | (0.6) | 12 | (1.7) | 9 | (1.4) | 24 | (0.7) | 22 | (0.7) | 29 | (0.6) | 31 | (0.7) | 9 | (0.6) | 12 | (1.4) | 16 | (2.4) | 24 | (0.6) | 27 | (0.6) |
Time spent on homework yesterday | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No homework assigned | 35 | (1.3) | 32 | (2.1) | 26 | (1.6) | 18 | (1.3) | 22 | (1.6) | 29 | (1.7) | 34 | (1.7) | 22 | (0.7) | 23 | (1.4) | 24 | (1.2) | 23 | (1.2) | 21 | (1.2) | 29 | (1.0) | 37 | (1.1) | 22 | (0.9) | 23 | (1.4) | 26 | (1.0) | 28 | (0.8) | 27 | (0.9) |
| Didn't do assignment | 4 | (0.3) | 4 | (0.4) | 4 | (0.3) | 5 | (0.3) | 4 | (0.4) | 7 | (0.4) | 7 | (0.4) | 4 | (0.2) | 6 | (0.6) | 5 | (0.4) | 7 | (0.3) | 5 | (0.3) | 7 | (0.3) | 7 | (0.4) | 11 | (0.3) | 11 | (0.6) | 13 | (0.7) | 12 | (0.4) | 11 | (0.4) |
| Less than 1 hour | 41 | (1.0) | 48 | (1.7) | 53 | (1.4) | 60 | (1.2) | 57 | (1.3) | 51 | (1.4) | 46 | (1.5) | 36 | (0.6) | 34 | (1.0) | 37 | (1.4) | 43 | (1.2) | 44 | (0.8) | 39 | (0.9) | 32 | (0.8) | 26 | (0.4) | 27 | (0.9) | 26 | (1.0) | 27 | (0.5) | 26 | (0.8) |
| 1 to 2 hours | 13 | (0.4) | 11 | (0.7) | 12 | (0.7) | 12 | (0.5) | 12 | (0.6) | 9 | (0.4) | 9 | (0.4) | 29 | (0.5) | 28 | (1.0) | 26 | (1.0) | 21 | (0.7) | 23 | (0.9) | 20 | (0.6) | 18 | (0.6) | 27 | (0.5) | 26 | (1.2) | 23 | (0.8) | 22 | (0.5) | 23 | (0.6) |
| More than 2 hours | 6 | (0.2) | 4 | (0.4) | 5 | (0.5) | 5 | (0.3) | 5 | (0.3) | 4 | (0.3) | 4 | (0.4) | 9 | (0.3) | 9 | (0.7) | 8 | (0.8) | 6 | (0.4) | 7 | (0.5) | 6 | (0.4) | 5 | (0.3) | 13 | (0.5) | 13 | (0.9) | 12 | (0.9) | 10 | (0.5) | 13 | (0.7) |
TV/video watched on school day | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| None | 3 | (0.2) | 2 | (0.2) | 4 | (0.8) | 4 | (0.3) | 6 | (0.3) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 2 | (0.2) | 3 | (0.3) | 4 | (0.6) | 5 | (0.3) | 6 | (0.3) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 5 | (0.3) | 6 | (0.8) | 6 | (0.3) | 6 | (0.3) | 10 | (0.3) |
| 1 hour or less | 14 | (0.3) | 23 | (1.0) | 24 | (0.9) | 24 | (0.6) | 27 | (0.7) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 12 | (0.4) | 20 | (1.0) | 22 | (0.8) | 25 | (0.7) | 29 | (0.6) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 25 | (0.5) | 31 | (0.9) | 34 | (0.9) | 33 | (0.6) | 34 | (0.6) |
| 2 hours | 16 | (0.4) | 23 | (0.7) | 21 | (0.9) | 18 | (0.5) | 18 | (0.5) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 23 | (0.5) | 27 | (0.7) | 29 | (0.8) | 25 | (0.5) | 27 | (0.7) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 26 | (0.3) | 26 | (0.8) | 26 | (0.9) | 27 | (0.6) | 25 | (0.5) |
| 3 hours | 15 | (0.3) | 16 | (0.5) | 14 | (0.6) | 13 | (0.4) | 12 | (0.5) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 23 | (0.4) | 22 | (0.8) | 20 | (0.9) | 18 | (0.5) | 15 | (0.5) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 20 | (0.3) | 18 | (0.8) | 17 | (0.7) | 16 | (0.5) | 16 | (0.6) |
| 4 hours | 12 | (0.2) | 11 | (0.5) | 9 | (0.4) | 9 | (0.4) | 8 | (0.4) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 17 | (0.4) | 12 | (0.7) | 11 | (0.6) | 10 | (0.4) | 8 | (0.3) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 12 | (0.3) | 9 | (0.6) | 8 | (0.5) | 8 | (0.4) | 8 | (0.3) |
| 5 hours | 9 | (0.3) | 6 | (0.4) | 6 | (0.4) | 6 | (0.3) | 6 | (0.3) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 10 | (0.3) | 7 | (0.4) | 5 | (0.3) | 5 | (0.3) | 4 | (0.2) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 6 | (0.2) | 5 | (0.5) | 4 | (0.4) | 4 | (0.2) | 3 | (0.2) |
| 6 hours or more | 30 | (0.7) | 20 | (0.8) | 22 | (1.2) | 26 | (0.8) | 23 | (0.8) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 13 | (0.4) | 10 | (0.9) | 9 | (0.6) | 13 | (0.4) | 10 | (0.5) | --- | (†) | --- | (†) | 6 | (0.2) | 5 | (0.4) | 5 | (0.6) | 6 | (0.4) | 5 | (0.3) |
| ---Not available. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| †Not applicable. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| ‡Reporting standards not met (too few cases for a reliable estimate). | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1Scale ranges from 0 to 500. Students scoring 150 (or higher) are able to follow brief written directions and carry out simple, discrete reading tasks. Students scoring 200 are able to understand, combine ideas, and make inferences based on short uncomplicated passages about specific or sequentially related information. Students scoring 250 are able to search for specific information, interrelate ideas, and make generalizations about literature, science, and social studies materials. Students scoring 300 are able to find, understand, summarize, and explain relatively complicated literary and informational material. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| NOTE: Includes public, private, Bureau of Indian Education, and Department of Defense Education Activity schools. For 1984, 1994, and 1999, accommodations were not permitted. For 2008 and later years, includes students tested with accommodations; excludes only those students with disabilities and English language learners who were unable to be tested even with accommodations (2 to 4 percent of all students, depending on age and assessment year). Detail may not sum to totals because of rounding. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), NAEP Trends in Academic Progress, 1996 and 1999; and 2008, 2012, 2020, and 2023 NAEP Long-Term Trend Reading Assessment, retrieved June 24, 2009, July 02, 2013, and September 12, 2023, from the Long-Term Trend NAEP Data Explorer (https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ndecore/xplore/NDE). (This table was prepared September 2023.) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
