Ashbrook Executive Director Consulted as Expert on History and Civics Education

December 24, 2020

The 2014 NAEP scores in U.S. History and Civics were released and the results are abysmal. With only 18% of the Nation’s eighth graders scoring at or above proficient in History and only 23% at or above proficient in Civics, the results are troubling. They also reflect a disturbing trend, as test scores show no statistical improvement over the past four years. 
 
As the news broke across the nation, questions of the implications of these scores arose. Roger Beckett, executive director for the Ashbrook Center, was consulted by a variety of news and media outlets to weigh in as an expert on U.S. history and civics, the impact of the 2014 NAEP Scores, and what that means for our education system in America.

As of May 15, 2015, Roger has been quoted in the following news articles, as well as many regional news sources:

Bloomberg Businessweek, 4/29/15: Most U.S. Middle-School Kids Don’t Know How Government Works

Daily Caller, 4/29/15: American Students Flunk Their Own History, Geography

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, 5/2/15: What would Tom think?

Wall Street OTC: 4/29/15: U.S. Eighth-graders Scoring Low in History and Civics on Nation’s Report Card

Washington Examiner, 4/29/15: Eighth-graders struggling with basic U.S. history, civics

Washington Post, 5/1/15: Disappointment in the latest Nation’s Report Card

Washington Times, 5/13/15: American amnesia

Listen to Roger Beckett’s radio interview from April 30th on McIntyre in the Morning on 790 KABC in Los Angeles.