Average test score
How far above or below the national average children here score on tests, in grade levels. Minus one means about a year behind. It reflects everything in children's lives, not only their schools.
Reported for2,772areas, in 50 states — none in DC, PR
Link to density0.20not mostly about how urban a place is
Nearby places alike0.47Moran’s I: strongly, neighbouring places tend to be similar
Typerategrade levels
How it has moved
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Every state, every year
Nothing to draw here: this measure has no state figures. Its publisher reports it for counties. This site does not add county numbers up into state figures, since a home-made figure could clash with one an agency publishes itself. The chart above covers the whole country, year by year.
Where it comes from
Stanford Education Data Archive · SEDA cs_mn_avg_ol
Stanford University · pooled over 2009–2019 · Standard errors published (a measure of how far off a figure might be), converted to 90% margins
How far above or below the national average a county's children score, measured in grade levels. It reflects everything that happened to them before and outside school as much as anything inside it. Time period: pooled over 2009-2019, the years the archive covers; these are pre-pandemic results and describe a decade of testing rather than a single year.
Combining areas: an average weighted by tests taken.
What it goes with
The strongest links that have a page of their own. Unadjusted is the link before adjusting for anything, from −1 (opposite) to +1 (in step). Adjusted compares places with the same population density, income and education levels, so those differences can’t explain the link. This list leaves out the 1 pairs built from the same numbers or the same model as this measure, since they are bound to match.
| Measure | Unadjusted | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Average test score and Housing insecurityWhere Average test score is higher, Housing insecurity tends to be lower: a strong link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Housing insecurity by US county | -0.82 | -0.71 |
| Average test score and Food insecurityWhere Average test score is higher, Food insecurity tends to be lower: a strong link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Food insecurity by US county | -0.82 | -0.70 |
| Average test score and Lack of reliable transportationWhere Average test score is higher, Lack of reliable transportation tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Lack of reliable transportation by US county | -0.82 | -0.69 |
| Average test score and Share White, not HispanicWhere Average test score is higher, Share White, not Hispanic tends to be higher: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Share White, not Hispanic by US county | +0.57 | +0.66 |
| Average test score and Lacking social and emotional supportWhere Average test score is higher, Lacking social and emotional support tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Lacking social and emotional support by US county | -0.75 | -0.65 |
| Average test score and Threat of utility shut-offWhere Average test score is higher, Threat of utility shut-off tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Threat of utility shut-off by US county | -0.79 | -0.65 |
| Average test score and Received food stampsWhere Average test score is higher, Received food stamps tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Received food stamps by US county | -0.78 | -0.64 |
| Average test score and Material security scoreWhere Average test score is higher, Material security score tends to be higher: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Material security score by US county | +0.74 | +0.62 |
| Average test score and Self-care disabilityWhere Average test score is higher, Self-care disability tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Self-care disability by US county | -0.77 | -0.61 |
| Average test score and Vision disabilityWhere Average test score is higher, Vision disability tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Vision disability by US county | -0.77 | -0.61 |
Population makeup
How this measure varies with the racial and ethnic makeup of counties. Every group is shown, whatever its rank. These are links across counties: they describe places, not people. They say nothing about any person’s risk or behaviour based on their race. Counties with a larger share of one group also differ in much else, such as income, segregation, region and history. The adjusted figure only accounts for density, income and education.
| Share of residents | Unadjusted | Adjusted |
|---|---|---|
| Average test score and Share White, not HispanicWhere Average test score is higher, Share White, not Hispanic tends to be higher: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Share White, not Hispanic by US county | +0.57 | +0.66 |
| Average test score and Share Black, not HispanicWhere Average test score is higher, Share Black, not Hispanic tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Share Black, not Hispanic by US county | -0.56 | -0.53 |
| Average test score and Share Hispanic or Latino, any raceWhere Average test score is higher, Share Hispanic or Latino, any race tends to be lower: a weak link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared. Share Hispanic or Latino, any race by US county | -0.24 | -0.33 |
| Average test score and Share Asian, not HispanicWhere Average test score is higher, Share Asian, not Hispanic tends to be lower: a weak link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared. Share Asian, not Hispanic by US county | +0.16 | -0.23 |
| Average test score and Share American Indian or Alaska Native, not HispanicWhere Average test score is higher, Share American Indian or Alaska Native, not Hispanic tends to be lower: a moderate link that holds when only places with similar density, income and education are compared, and inside states as well. Share American Indian or Alaska Native, not Hispanic by US county | -0.41 | -0.42 |
Highest and lowest
Of 2,772 counties reporting it. These are the two ends of a national ranking. For most measures, that ranking mostly sorts places by income and how urban they are. That is why the place pages compare each place with similar places instead.
Highest
- Skagway Municipality, AK — 0.738
- Forsyth County, GA — 0.713
- Norfolk County, MA — 0.652
- Morris County, NJ — 0.627
- Williamson County, TN — 0.621
Lowest
- Kusilvak Census Area, AK — -1.31
- Bethel Census Area, AK — -1.27
- Todd County, SD — -1.21
- St. Helena Parish, LA — -1.16
- Sioux County, ND — -1.15
The middle area reports -0.0649. The middle half of counties falls between -0.222 and 0.137 (the 25th to 75th percentile).
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