Figure CNF5.2 shows the average numeracy scores of this group and of grade five students in the Marshall Islands in previous PILNA cycles. The average overall numeracy score for the Marshall Islands grade five students in 2021 was lower than in all previous PILNA cycles (2018 = 505.60, 2015 = 486.01). The standard deviation, however, was greater than in all previous PILNA cycles (2018 SD = 57.98, 2015 SD = 44.60). This means that the distribution of overall numeracy scores in 2021 was more spread out than in previous PILNA cycles. More analysis needs to be done to understand whether these differences in scores are statistically significant.

Standard deviation shows how close data points are to the average. A lower standard deviation means that data points are, overall, closer to the average; a higher standard deviation means that data points are, overall, further away from the average.