The states where K-12 students care most about doing well in school, ranked

School children interact with their teacher. Paul Bersebach/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images As the back-to-school season approaches — or, in some states, has already begun — students, teachers, and parents are preparing for another year of hard work and focus on school.But the extent to which children care about learning varies across US states, according to a 2023-2024 study by the National Survey of Children's Health, a data collection program funded by the Health Resources and Services Administration's Maternal and Child Health Bureau.The analysis included responses from 70,282 children across the US between the ages of 6 and 17 and asked parents and guardians two questions: how often does this child care about doing well in school, and how often does this child do all the required homework?The answers were then reflected into three categories: "always," "usually," and "sometimes or never" engaged in school. Those categorized in "always" put that answer for both questions. Those in "usually" responded to both questions as "usually" or to one as "usually" and the other as "always." All remaining children were classified as "sometimes or never."Those in the Northeast, including New Jersey, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Pennsylvania, had the largest shares of children reported as always engaged in school. Children in New Hampshire and Vermont, however, were among the least engaged; Alaska ranked last.Still, the findings offer a snapshot of how consistently caregivers say children are motivated and completing their schoolwork — not a direct measure of academic performance or school quality.Engagement can be shaped by many overlapping factors, like family routines, disability or mental health needs, school workload, chronic absenteeism, and access to tutoring or after-school care. The interpretation of "always" and "usually" may also vary by respondent.Here's how children ages 6 to 17 in every state and Washington, DC, fared. 51. Alaska Fairbanks, Alaska. Jacob Boomsma/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 34.5% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 45.2% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 20.3% of children 50. Idaho Boise City, Idaho. Sean Pavone/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 34.5% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 45.2% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 20.3% of children 49. New Hampshire Greenville, New Hampshire. BackyardProduction/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 34.9% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 45.7% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 19.4% of children 48. Utah Salt Lake City, Utah. Vadym Terelyuk/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 34.9% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 41.3% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 23.8% of children 47. Montana Bozeman, Montana Jacob Boomsma/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 35.4% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 40.5% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 24.1% of children 46. Vermont Stowe, Vermont BackyardProduction/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 36.5% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 40.3% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 23.1% of children 45. Oregon Portland, Oregon. espiegle/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 36.9% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 39.7% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 23.4% of children 44. Wyoming Laramie, Wyoming. Wirestock/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 37.6% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 41.6% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 20.8% of children 43. West Virginia Clarksburg, West Virginia. ChrisBoswell/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 37.8% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 41.1% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 21.1% of children 42. Colorado Aurora, Colorado. Jacob Boomsma/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 38.7% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 42.1% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 19.2% of children 41. Indiana Indianapolis, Indiana. : Joe Sohm/Visions of America/Universal Images Group via Getty Images Always engaged in school: 38.7% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 40.4% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 20.8% of children 40. Washington Seattle, Washington SEASTOCK/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 39.1% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 38.8% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 22.1% of children 39. Nevada Reno, Nevada. miroslav_1/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 39.3% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 37.7% of childrentsSometimes or never engaged in school: 22.9% of children 38. Oklahoma Oklahoma City. RudyBalasko/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 39.4% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 40.5% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 20.2% of children 37. Missouri St. Louis, Missouri. Sean Pavone/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 39.5% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 39.1% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 21.4% of children 36. New Mexico Santa Fe, New Mexico. Sean Pavone/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 39.8% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 39.3% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 20.9% of children 35. Minnesota St. Paul, Minnesota. RudyBalasko/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 40.0% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 38.8% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 21.2% of children 34. Wisconsin Madison, Wisconsin Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 40.7% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 39.2% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 20.1% of children 33. Iowa Des Moines, Iowa. Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 41.1% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 39.2% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 19.7% of children 32. Maine Portland, Maine Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 41.1% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 37.9% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 21.0% of children 31. South Dakota Sioux Falls, South Dakota. DenisTangneyJr/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 41.5% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 38.9% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 19.6% of children 30. Virginia Charlottesville, Virginia. Eli Wilson/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 41.5% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 38.0% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 20.5% of children 29. North Carolina Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Kruck20/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 42.4% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 38.6% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 19.0% of children 28. North Dakota Bismarck, North Dakota. halbergman/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 42.7% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 39.4% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 17.9% of children 27. Hawaii Honolulu, Hawaii. Iryna Olkhova/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 43.0% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 42.0% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 15.0% of children 26. Kansas Lawrence, Kansas. Jacob Boomsma/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 43.0% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 39.2% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 17.8% of children 25. Nebraska Omaha, Nebraska. Jacob Boomsma/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 43.0% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 40.2% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 16.8% of children 24. Maryland Cumberland, Maryland. PBallay/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 43.1% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 36.1% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 20.8% of children 23. Michigan Ann Arbor, Michigan. Sean Pavone/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 43.8% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 37.2% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 19.1% of children 22. South Carolina Charleston, South Carolina. Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 43.9% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 34.3% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 21.8% of children 21. Georgia Atlanta, Georgia. Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 44.4% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 38.4% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 17.2% of children 20. Illinois Chicago, Illinois. Iryna Olkhova/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 44.4% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 39.5% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 16.1% of children 19. Ohio Cleveland, Ohio. Ultima_Gaina/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 44.7% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 37.0% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 18.3% of children 18. Louisiana New Orleans, Louisiana. Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 45.1% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 34.7% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 20.3% of children 17. Arkansas Little Rock, Arkansas. Rdlamkin/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 45.6% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 33.1% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 21.3% of children 16. Kentucky Louisville, Kentucky. Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 45.6% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 36.1% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 18.2% of children 15. New York Buffalo, New York. Sean Pavone/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 45.6% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 35.0% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 19.4% of children 14. Arizona Tucson, Arizona. Sean Pavone/iStock Always engaged in school: 45.8% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 34.7% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 19.4% of children 13. District of Columbia Washington, DC. Westy72/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 45.8% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 35.2% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 19.0% of children 12. Mississippi Jackson, Mississippi. Dennis MacDonald/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 46.3% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 35.5% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 18.2% of children 11. California San Luis Obispo, California. russokm1105/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 46.4% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 36.3% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 17.2% of children 10. Alabama Mobile, Alabama. SeanPavonePhoto/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 46.5% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 36.3% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 17.2% of children 9. Florida Tampa, Florida. SeanPavonePhoto/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 46.6% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 36.0% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 17.4% of children 8. Rhode Island Providence, Rhode Island. Wirestock/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 46.8% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 35.9% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 17.3% of children 7. Connecticut New Haven, Connecticut. Ashley RK Smith/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 47.0% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 34.6% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 18.4% of children 6. Texas Austin, Texas. RudyBalasko/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 47.0% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 34.7% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 18.3% of children 5. Tennessee Nashville, Tennessee. Sean Pavone/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 47.3% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 35.7% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 17.0% of children 4. Delaware Wilmington, Delaware. Chris Boswell/Getty Images/iStockphoto Always engaged in school: 47.8% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 33.4% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 18.8% of children 3. Pennsylvania Gettysburg, Pennsylvania Kyle Little/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 48.7% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 34.4% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 16.9% of children 2. Massachusetts Boston, Massachusetts. Thomas Roell/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 48.8% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 34.6% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 16.5% of children 1. New Jersey Newark, New Jersey. DenisTangneyJr/Getty Images Always engaged in school: 54.1% of childrenUsually engaged in school: 31.4% of childrenSometimes or never engaged in school: 14.5% of children Read next Tristin Hoffman is a Life Fellow on Business Insider’s Editorial Partnerships team. Her reporting focuses on retail, travel, business, and more through a visual storytelling and lifestyle lens. She has previously reported on Oregon’s economy for The Oregonian and Pennsylvania litigation for Law.com. Her stories have inspired policy changes, shed light on public officials’ misconduct, and gained national awards. She graduated from the University of Oregon, where she studied journalism and law while serving as editor-in-chief of The Daily Emerald. Education Parenting