We have yet to see any rebound in middle school math on the nation’s report card, where scores declined by 8 points from 2019 to 2022 and remained at that low point when kids last took NAEP in 2024.

Under the Common Core State Standards, Algebra 1 is a much tougher course than what was taught previously in most states, teachers and standards experts say, in part because many of the concepts that ...