A close look at the 2009 NAEP reading scores in two states with among the highest and lowest scores nationally—Massachusetts and Mississippi—shows gender gaps in proficiency at both grade levels (see figures 1 and 2). But the data also show:
- Overall reading proficiency varies widely from state to state.
- In fourth grade, more than twice the percentage of boys in Massachusetts (45 percent) score at the proficient level or higher than boys in Mississippi (20 percent).
- Boys in Massachusetts are almost twice as likely as girls in Mississippi to be proficient readers.
- In Massachusetts, the gender gap is larger between older girls and boys.
Figure 1. Percent Proficient or Higher on 2009 NAEP Fourth-Grade Reading
Figure 2. Percent Proficient or Higher on 2009 NAEP Eighth-Grade Reading
Source: U.S. Department of Education, Institute for Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics, NAEP 2009 Reading Assessment.
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