DES MOINES — Not satisfied in merely keeping Iowa kids from getting fatter, Kim Reynolds now wants to intervene to cease plummeting test scores of our youth with another measure with its crosshairs centered on kids.
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds, herself a lean woman, wants Iowa kids to not be fat. That’s why she shoots down federal funds to feed hungry children in the summer and introduced a measure in 2017 to control the food youths eat, screen time and activities.
Just as Iowa kids are allegedly getting plumper, they seem to be getting dumber, too. Although that makes for the perfect voters in our elections, according to some, evidently Kim Reynolds is doing something about it. She announced that she has introduced legislation to improve students’ math proficiency and civics education to the Iowa House and Senate.
A recent report by the U.S. Department of Education shows declining math scores among Iowa students. According to the 2024 National Assessment of Educational Progress, Iowa fourth graders fell from 7th to 30th and our eighth graders from 15th to 23rd in the nation for math proficiency.
In order to improve math performance, Gov. Reynolds’ bill requires early screening and targeted intervention for students struggling with mathematics. The Iowa Department of Education will support schools and districts in identifying students and developing personalized mathematics plans.
Gov. Reynolds’ bill also proposes equipping teachers with evidence-based strategies and tools to effectively provide math instruction in the classroom. Her bill provides resources for parents to further support their children’s numeracy development at home.
“Our state’s math scores show there is plenty of room for improvement,” Gov. Reynolds said. “Next to early childhood literacy, nothing is a more proven indicator of future success than math proficiency. More than a quarter of Iowa fourth graders are not proficient in math—that is unacceptable. We must provide math instruction in the way we know it works to keep our students competitive and set them up to excel in life after school.”
Gov. Reynolds’ bill would also require high school students to score 60% or higher on the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ Naturalization Test to graduate. Her bill would provide accommodations for English language learners and students with disabilities. Students would be allowed to retake the exam until they achieve a passing score.