New Jersey remained near the top among states for student performance on U.S. math and reading tests known as the "Nation's Report Card," despite a dip in scores in the past two years.

Test scores dropped for fourth-graders in math and reading and for eighth-graders in reading on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, according to results released by the federal government Wednesday. The state's decline was part of a nationwide downward trend that U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos called "devastating."

Despite New Jersey's strong showing overall, wide gaps in achievement remained between rich and poor students and among different races, with lower-income and African-American pupils well behind white and affluent peers in all categories.

The disparity is "troubling," said Patricia Morgan, executive director of JerseyCan, an education-reform advocacy group.

“What the NAEP results continue to show is that New Jersey must strive to be better," Morgan said. "Far too many students in vulnerable communities don’t have access to the education they deserve. Equity in education must be a primary goal for all of us.”

Here's a breakdown of statewide scores New Jersey:

Fourth-grade math: In 2019, the average score was 246, down two points from 2017, the last time the rankings were released. But it still topped the national average of 240. (The highest possible score on the exams is 500.)

Fourth-grade reading: In 2019, the average score was 227. That also beat the national average of 219 but was lower than New Jersey's average score of 233 in 2017.

Eighth-grade math: In 2019, the average score was 292, unchanged from two years ago. The national average was 281.

Eighth-grade reading: The average score was 270, down five points from 2017. It was higher than the national average of 262.

Despite the slipping scores, New Jersey eighth-graders were second and first in the nation, respectively, in reading and math. Students in fourth grade ranked third and second in those subjects.

Other states with strong performance on the NAEP included Massachusetts and Minnesota.

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Low-income students scored 26 points lower on average in fourth-grade math and 30 points less in reading. New Jersey's racial divide was most apparent in eighth grade, where there was a 31-point gap in reading and a 39-point gap in math between white and African-American children.

The tests do not identify causes for fluctuations in performance on the exams, which are taken by samples of students in different communities. The National Center for Education Statistics, part of the U.S. Department of Education, administers the tests and provides a state comparison every two years.

Mike Yaple, a spokesman for the New Jersey Department of Education, said the rankings were part of a pattern of high performance for the state. Education Week’s "Quality Counts" report recently placed New Jersey first in the nation in areas such as academics, school funding and children’s chances for success, he said in a statement.

“New Jersey public schools consistently rank among the strongest in the nation, and thanks to the work of our educators, we are among the top handful of states again this year,” Yaple said.

NAEP results can be found online at https://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/.

Hannan Adely is an education reporter for NorthJersey.com. To get unlimited access to the latest news about your child’s school district, testing and graduation requirements, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: adely@northjersey.com Twitter: @adelyreporter