The Department of Education released its annual “Condition of Education” report today, and as always it is filled with interesting information. There are, however, a couple of curious omissions. The report has a lengthy section discussing the international evidence on U.S. student and adult achievement, including the scores of fourth and eighth graders on the Third International Mathematics and Science Survey.

What’s missing are the scores of 12th graders. At the end of high school, American students are in last place in mathematics, and second to last place in science.

This sad reality caps a steady trend: The longer American kids spend in our public schools, the worse they do compared to their peers in other industrialized countries. At the fourth grade, we’re close to the average of developed nations, by the ninth grade we’re below that average, and by the 12th grade we’ve hit rock bottom.

The literacy scores of our young adults are also abysmal. On the recent international Adult Literacy and Lifeskills test, the only country we beat was Italy — the only country we managed to edge out in 12th grade science. Hurray.