As part of the federal No Child Left Behind education reforms, the tests were administered in reading and math for the first time this year in all 50 states. Known as "the nation’s report card," the NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress) assesses what students know and can accomplish in a variety of subjects.

The national tests measure more than whether scores are going up or down. They also show how students are doing compared with how they ought to be doing, a level termed "proficient," which means understanding challenging subject matter and applying it to real-world situations.

In reading and math, fewer than one in three students achieved the proficient level.

U.S. Secretary of Education Rod Paige delivered a speech to UNESCO in Paris on October 3, wherein he stated that President Bush’s goal is that "every child must learn to read by the third grade." Paige said that Bush has invested historic levels of funding in education, and that his latest budget request boosts education funding to "levels that represent a 25% increase since he took office."

Paige told the UNESCO Round Table of Ministers on Quality Education that "my country has been multicultural since its founding," and that we are "preparing our children to become citizens of the world."