The results of a series of tests known as the The National Assessment of Educational Progress published today suggest that average reading and mathematics scores among the nation's twelfth-grade students have improved since 2005, surprising experts in the field. The reading and mathematics tests were administered to a representative national sample of roughly 50,000 public and private school students in the spring of 2009; they were conducted by the Department of Education.

The national average reading score increased from its historic-low of 286 points in 2005 to 288 in 2009, though that figure is still lower than the average score of 292 in 1992, the first year the tests were administered. The average mathematics score reached 153 points in 2009, up from 150 in 2005 (earlier comparisons are not possible, as the mathematics exam was altered prior to 2005 testing). The reading assessment is graded on a 500-point scale and mathematics on a 300-point scale.

According to a New York Times article on the results, "Experts said the increases, after years of dismal achievement reports, were surprising because every year the nation’s schools are educating more black and Hispanic students, who on average score lower than whites and Asians."

The average reading score for Asian twelfth-grade students surpassed that of white students in 2009, increasing from 287 in 2005 to 298 while the average for white students increased only 3 points during the same period, from 293 to 296. The average Hispanic twelfth-grader scored 274 in 2009, up from 272, and the average black student 269, up from 267 in 2005. Students who reported reading more scored higher on their reading examinations.

A comparison of state and national results for twelfth-grade public school students in the eleven states that participated in the first state pilot program in 2009 are below.