The biggest disappointment comes from the fact the students are not performing better despite increases in education spending.
The findings come from the National Assessment of Educational Progress more commonly called the Nation's Report Card.
Officials point at lower-performing students remaining in school as one of the biggest reasons for the numbers.
Shawnee Oklahoma Middle School principal Brent Houston is a member of the National Assessment Governing Board.
Even so, some are saying the numbers are not as bad as it seems.
"In some ways, the findings are full of hope. Today's children ages 9 and 13 are scoring better overall than students at those ages in the early '70s," he said.
The results are from 2012 and are based on 26,000 students in both public and private schools.