Study Finds Most U.S. Students Can’t Name All 50 Numbers

WASHINGTON—Underscoring the impact of the pandemic on student learning, a new study released Wednesday by the Department of Education found that most U.S. students are unable to name all 50 numbers. “Assessments taken from students during the 2022 to 2023 school year showed that the majority of students can only name between 20 and 25 of the numbers that exist,” said Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona of the study, which also found that, while some could name a handful of digits like four, 23, and one, students were unable to recite them in the correct order. “A staggering 55% of students say they’ve never heard of 13, while nearly two thirds think that F is a number. The data also show that many more children clearly guessed the names for numerals, using ‘feckteen,’ ‘bleven,’ and ‘twunky-one.’” The alarming study also revealed that the vast majority of public school students could barely name all 100 letters.