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Every few years, testing experts at the U.S. Department of Education weigh state assessments against their 鈥済old standard,鈥� the National Assessment of Educational Progress, also known as 鈥渢he nation鈥檚 report card.鈥�

In released in 2021, two states stood out, but not in a good way. Both Iowa and Virginia established fourth grade reading standards that only measured up to  鈥渂elow basic鈥� on NAEP. 

In Virginia, the revelation sparked a public outcry.

Former Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin seized on the discrepancy, often called the 鈥渉onesty gap,鈥� to push through tougher standards and assessments. His administration to the mismatch and Aimee Guidera, his education secretary, traversed the state, preparing that many of their children鈥檚 scores would soon be going dramatically down. News coverage kept up with the for and against the changes.

But in Iowa, Gov. Kim Reynolds, also a Republican, has stayed silent on the matter. In fact, there鈥檚 been so little reaction to the gap that some state capitol insiders had no idea it existed. 

鈥淚 was shocked,鈥� said Dustin Miller, a lobbyist. 鈥淚f this is our future workforce, we need to ask questions about this.鈥�

This past spring, he took part in what he called a 鈥渕aster class鈥� on K-12 issues offered by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. The foundation had just released calling on business leaders in states with large honesty gaps to advocate for higher standards.

In Iowa, 75% of fourth graders reached proficiency in reading in 2025 on the , one of the highest rates in the nation. But the rate is deceptive, masking the fact that less than a third of Iowa鈥檚 students hit the proficiency mark on NAEP. Sean Finn, a policy analyst with Common Good Iowa, a left-leaning think tank, noted those results when that the state was no longer a leader in education.

Largely behind closed doors, the state is now updating its assessment system. It adopted new standards in 2024, and this past spring, administered new tests based on those standards. But so far, state officials have devoted scant public attention to the matter. In a state where Gov. Reynolds has been criticized for , Anne Discher, executive director of Common Good Iowa, said she鈥檚 not surprised.  

鈥淚 am not sure that we are experiencing a state government that prioritizes openness with the public,鈥� she said.

Carmen Gwenigale-Ogoli, director of curriculum, instruction and assessment for the Iowa City School District, said the 鈥淚owa Department of Education has not yet released extensive information鈥� about the testing changes. 

Some teachers in her district, however, participated in a standard-setting process in June. They were among the 155 educators who met in Des Moines to recommend the minimum scores students must earn to pass the new tests, also known as cut scores. 

Heather Doe, a spokeswoman for the state education agency, pushed back on the suggestion that officials haven鈥檛 informed districts of the changes to come. The information, she said, has been 鈥渂roadly shared,鈥� and Director McKenzie Snow discussed the process at the School Administrators of Iowa鈥檚 recent meeting. In November, the state board will vote on final cut score recommendations. 

But Brad Buck, executive director of the organization, said he couldn鈥檛 tell from Snow鈥檚 comments whether the changes will be significant.

Doe said a date for the release of the cut scores hasn鈥檛 been set. She wouldn鈥檛 say whether they鈥檒l accord with NAEP, but said the teachers were informed 鈥渂y the high expectations鈥� of the national test. If they raise the bar, that could result in fewer students passing the test. 

Because of the update, this year鈥檚 results to previous years, but they should 鈥減rovide families with clearer information about student progress,鈥� Doe said.聽

鈥楬ealthy thing鈥�

Not all state officials are convinced their proficiency cut scores should match NAEP鈥檚.

Republican state Sen. Lynn Evans, chair of the education committee and a former superintendent, said it鈥檚 a 鈥渉ealthy thing鈥� to compare state and NAEP performance levels. But he called NAEP a 鈥渙ne-shot assessment鈥� only given to a sample of students, and is skeptical of the honesty gap.

鈥淣AEP is a dipstick. Only certain school districts give it,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 always leaned more into locally developed assessments. To me, that鈥檚 a truer test of how students perform.鈥�

A new from NCES, released in July, showed that Maine鈥檚 fourth grade reading standards also fall in the below basic range. But Janette Kirk, chief of federal programs at the Maine Department of Education, said the agency would wait for a final study, expected in the coming months, before making any adjustments. 

She said officials agreed with NCES鈥� statements that the reviews are not intended to 鈥渟uggest that NAEP achievement levels are more valid than state standards or that states should emulate NAEP standards.鈥�

In recent years, several states, like Wisconsin and New York, have lowered expectations on state tests, saying the post-pandemic decline in student performance called for a 鈥渘ew normal.鈥� 

Virginia chose to go in a different direction. Its tougher cut scores, phased in over time, are set to this school year. In June, the state education agency, now under Democratic Gov. Abigail Spanberger, , but the state board rejected it. 

Andrew Rotherham, a former Virginia state board member, said some leaders struggle with the honesty gap topic, likening it to 鈥渨ater on cats for some people.鈥� But in Virginia, he said, on the timeline was the right thing to do. He also acknowledged that it鈥檚 politically difficult to implement higher standards when the public thinks their schools are doing well. 

鈥淭he phase-in will be a transition, it will be confusing,鈥� he recently wrote, 鈥渁nd it will require state leadership to help people understand what鈥檚 going on.鈥�

New Jersey is currently going through the same shift, one that has in releasing scores. With two kids in middle school in the state, Charles Barone, senior director of the National Parents Union鈥檚 Center for Innovation, said it鈥檚 important for states to be transparent with the public when . 

It鈥檚 a highly technical process, he said, one that both Republicans and Democrats sometimes avoid. 

鈥淚 think the right is torn between culture warriorism and rigor,鈥� he said. 鈥淎nd the left has mixed feelings about high-stakes testing.鈥�

Youngkin, he said, didn鈥檛 need the Democratic-controlled legislature to approve the new standards and assessments. The state board, which made the final decision, was largely made up of .

But in Iowa, with a GOP majority in the state House and Senate, Reynolds focused on accomplishing her top , a universal education savings account program. 

The presence of the honesty gap didn鈥檛 stop Reynolds from receiving a lot of positive attention from Education Secretary Linda McMahon. In January the secretary granted the state a waiver from some rules governing federal funds. The governor pointed to the state test results when asking the administration for more flexibility. 

鈥淲e鈥檙e proving that I think we鈥檙e up to the task, that we鈥檙e definitely on the right track,鈥� she said at a .

McMahon also for advancing 鈥渆ducation freedom鈥� and chose the state as the first recipient of a , which expands the federal financial aid program to cover short-term training programs.

Barone predicted that Reynolds would not be hurt if she chose to leave the testing issue alone. With the governor leaving office in January, he said, 鈥渟he has a good enough legacy that she doesn’t have to worry about spending a lot of time on the honesty gap.鈥�

Disclosure: Andy Rotherham sits on 社区黑料鈥檚 board of directors.

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