US states by NAEP average score, reading, grade 4

Connecticut had the highest NAEP average score, reading, grade 4 of 51 states in 2003, at 228 NAEP scale score (0 to 500). District of Columbia had the lowest, at 188 NAEP scale score (0 to 500). The median was 219 NAEP scale score (0 to 500) and the figure for the United States was 216 NAEP scale score (0 to 500). Source: National Center for Education Statistics.

Highest228Connecticut

Lowest188District of Columbia

Median21951 states

United States216History

Map of states, 2003

Under 210
210 to 220
220 and over

NAEP scale score (0 to 500), 2003. Source: NCES, NAEP Data Service: average scale score, reading, grade 4, all students, public schools, states and nation. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2003

NAEP scale score (0 to 500). Source: NCES, NAEP Data Service: average scale score, reading, grade 4, all students, public schools, states and nation. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

Rank	States	2003 NAEP scale score (0 to 500)
1	Connecticut	228
2	New Hampshire	228
3	Massachusetts	228
4	Vermont	226
5	New Jersey	225
6	Delaware	224
7	Maine	224
8	Colorado	224
9	Virginia	223
10	Iowa	223
11	Montana	223
12	Minnesota	223
13	South Dakota	222
14	Missouri	222
15	New York	222
16	Wyoming	222
17	Ohio	222
18	North Dakota	222
19	North Carolina	221
20	Washington	221
21	Wisconsin	221
22	Nebraska	221
23	Indiana	220
24	Kansas	220
25	Utah	219
26	West Virginia	219
27	Kentucky	219
28	Michigan	219
29	Pennsylvania	219
30	Maryland	219
31	Idaho	218
32	Florida	218
33	Oregon	218
34	Rhode Island	216
35	Illinois	216
36	Texas	215
37	South Carolina	215
38	Arkansas	214
39	Georgia	214
40	Oklahoma	214
41	Tennessee	212
42	Alaska	212
43	Arizona	209
44	Hawaii	208
45	Alabama	207
46	Nevada	207
47	California	206
48	Mississippi	205
49	Louisiana	205
50	New Mexico	203
51	District of Columbia	188

Other periods

About this ranking

Average scale score of public school students in reading, grade 4 on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP, the Nation's Report Card), on a scale of 0 to 500, from the National Center for Education Statistics. The year is the year of the assessment, given from January to March.

NAEP tests a sample of students, so each score has a margin of error and a difference of a few points between states or years is often not statistically significant. States are tested every two years (2003 to 2019, then 2022 and 2024). The national value is for public schools only, the group NCES compares states with. Scores are on the same scale across years and states but cannot be compared with state test results.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the states are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics. NAEP Data Service: average scale score, reading, grade 4, all students, public schools, states and nation. https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ndecore/xplore/NDE. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

National Center for Education Statistics. (2026). NAEP Data Service: average scale score, reading, grade 4, all students, public schools, states and nation (US states by NAEP average score, reading, grade 4, 2003) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ndecore/xplore/NDE

MLA 9

NAEP Data Service: average scale score, reading, grade 4, all students, public schools, states and nation, US states by NAEP average score, reading, grade 4, 2003. National Center for Education Statistics, 12 Oct. 2026, https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ndecore/xplore/NDE. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/naep-reading-grade-4/us-states?period=2003. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

National Center for Education Statistics. 2026. NAEP Data Service: average scale score, reading, grade 4, all students, public schools, states and nation. US states by NAEP average score, reading, grade 4, 2003. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ndecore/xplore/NDE. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/naep-reading-grade-4/us-states?period=2003.

Harvard

National Center for Education Statistics (2026) NAEP Data Service: average scale score, reading, grade 4, all students, public schools, states and nation, US states by NAEP average score, reading, grade 4, 2003 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ndecore/xplore/NDE, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/naep-reading-grade-4/us-states?period=2003 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX

@misc{national_us_states_by_naep_2003,
  author = {{National Center for Education Statistics}},
  title = {{NAEP Data Service: average scale score, reading, grade 4, all students, public schools, states and nation: US states by NAEP average score, reading, grade 4, 2003}},
  year = {2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ndecore/xplore/NDE},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/naep-reading-grade-4/us-states?period=2003. Publisher attribution: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics. NAEP Data Service: average scale score, reading, grade 4, all students, public schools, states and nation. https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ndecore/xplore/NDE. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}

RIS

TY  - DATA
AU  - National Center for Education Statistics
TI  - NAEP Data Service: average scale score, reading, grade 4, all students, public schools, states and nation: US states by NAEP average score, reading, grade 4, 2003
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/12
PB  - National Center for Education Statistics
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ndecore/xplore/NDE
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/naep-reading-grade-4/us-states?period=2003
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/naep-reading-grade-4/us-states?period=2003.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Department of Education, Institute of Education Sciences, National Center for Education Statistics. NAEP Data Service: average scale score, reading, grade 4, all students, public schools, states and nation. https://www.nationsreportcard.gov/ndecore/xplore/NDE. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -

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Rank US states by NAEP average score, reading, grade 4 using official data, and cite the source.

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Questions

Which state has the highest NAEP average score, reading, grade 4?

Connecticut, with 228 NAEP scale score (0 to 500) in 2003, according to National Center for Education Statistics.

Which state has the lowest NAEP average score, reading, grade 4?

District of Columbia, with 188 NAEP scale score (0 to 500) in 2003.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: National Center for Education Statistics, NAEP Data Service: average scale score, reading, grade 4, all students, public schools, states and nation. Retrieved 2026-10-12.