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Podcast

Better NAEP news than you think | Episode 1022 of The Education Gadfly Show

Michael J. Petrilli David Griffith, Ph.D. Amber M. Northern, Ph.D.
6.17.2026
 

Mike Petrilli flies solo to discuss the latest Long-Term Trend NAEP results and why the bounce-back among nine-year-olds deserves more attention. While America’s education recovery is far from complete, especially for older students, Mike argues that the rebound in reading and partial recovery in math suggest that federal dollars, tutoring, economic trends, and perhaps science of reading reforms may be helping younger students regain lost ground.

Then, on the Research Minute, Amber Northern examines new evidence from Michigan on which school attendance strategies are associated with better student outcomes.

Recommended content:

  • A Surprising Sliver of Hope in New NAEP Scores for the Lowest-Performing Kids —Chad Aldeman, The 74
  • Declining NAEP Scores Are Flashing Red Lights for the Covid Generation —Michael J. Petrilli, EducationNext
  • Anatomy of a ‘Learning Recession’: Academic Losses Began in 2013, Report Finds —Kevin Mahnken, The 74
  • Experts say schools could recover pandemic losses by 2028. What then? —Jay Mathews, The Washington Post
  • The Learning Legacy of Randi Weingarten —The Editorial Board, The Wall Street Journal
  • Imperfect Attendance: Toward a fairer measure of student absenteeism —Jing Liu, Ph.D., Thomas B. Fordham Institute (2022)
  • Identifying Effective Attendance Strategies in Michigan —Jeremy Singer, Sarah Winchell Lenhoff, and Angela Lyle, EdWorkingPapers (2026)

Feedback Welcome: Have ideas for improving our show? We would love to hear them. Send them to [email protected]

Policy Priority:
High Expectations
Topics:
Accountability & Testing

President, Thomas B. Fordham Institute

Michael J. Petrilli is president of the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, executive editor of Education Next, editor in chief of the Education Gadfly Weekly, host of the…

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David Griffith is the National Research Director at the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, where he manages or authors reports on various subjects including charter schools, …

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Amber Northern is senior vice president for research at the Thomas B. Fordham Institute, where she supervises the Institute’s robust research portfolio and…

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