Essential education reporting across America

Assessment and testing

A student looks down and writes in a notebook
COVID and Schools COVID and Schools
Blizzard of state test scores shows some progress in math, divergence in reading
Experts aren’t sure why recovery has been more consistent in math.
By Matt Barnum and Kalyn Belsha
 
Teens sit at tables scattered around a classroom working on different projects.
From Chalkbeat New York School Enrollment
NYC’s complex high school admissions process is just around the corner. What families should know.
The city’s notoriously complex high school admissions process can be daunting and stressful for families. See what advice experts offer as applications are set to open next week.
By Julian Shen-Berro
 
Nine students write at desks in a classroom while a teacher walks by.
From Chalkbeat New York School Enrollment
Applying to NYC’s screened high schools? Selection criteria remains unchanged
The updated guidance comes just days before the city’s notoriously complex high school admissions process kicks off on Oct. 3.
By Julian Shen-Berro
 
Third grade students work at their desks in a classroom. A young girl has a bright reflection that brightens her face.
From Chalkbeat Colorado Student & School Performance
New Denver Public Schools progress report highlights goals met and missed but glosses over gaps
Students as a whole met goals in math but not in reading. But the district mostly missed goals in both subjects for Black and Latinx students.
By Melanie Asmar
 
Two adults stand at the front of a classroom full of students sitting at desks.
From Chalkbeat Chicago Student & School Performance
More Chicago students met state reading and math standards last school year — but are still behind pre-COVID levels
School-level data from the 2023 Illinois Assessment for Readiness shows many schools have not returned to pre-pandemic levels of students meeting standards in reading and math.
By Reema Amin and Becky Vevea
 
Close up of boys’ fingers pointing to words in book
From Chalkbeat Indiana Literacy
Science of reading’s eclipse of once-popular Indiana literacy program highlights curriculum questions
Schools must replace methods of literacy instruction that use three-cueing within the next year.
By Aleksandra Appleton
 
Students write with pencils.
From Chalkbeat New York Assessment and testing
NYC families can now see their kids’ state test scores. They’ll have to wait for overall trends.
State officials have not yet released broader data showing how students across the city or state fared on last year’s exams.
By Julian Shen-Berro
 
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From Chalkbeat Detroit Assessment and testing
Detroit schools saw small improvements on this year’s M-STEP exam
Results are beginning to climb back above pre-pandemic levels.
By Ethan Bakuli and Micah Walker, BridgeDetroit
 
A student is writing on a whiteboard in the front of a classroom, as her classmates look on.
From Chalkbeat Detroit Assessment and testing
Michigan students gain on M-STEP, but results still lag pre-pandemic levels
A particular area of concern is students who were in kindergarten in 2020 when the pandemic hit. Their third-grade reading results were well below pre-pandemic levels.
By Isabel Lohman, Hannah Dellinger, and 1 more
 
A young girl holds a blue marker in her hand as she sits at a desk and writes an equation on poster paper.
From Chalkbeat Chicago Student & School Performance
Chicago’s first day of school is almost here. Here are five things we’re watching this year.
The issues include the city’s precarious funding situation, enrollment shifts, and what support will look like for migrant students.
By Reema Amin
 
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From Chalkbeat Colorado Chalkbeat En Español
Resultados del CMAS 2023 en Colorado: ve cómo les fue a tu escuela y distrito
¿Te preguntas cómo les fue a tu escuela y distrito en el examen de CMAS 2023? Usa nuestra gráfica para hacer una búsqueda, ver y comparar.
By Yesenia Robles and Erica Meltzer
 
Close up of boys’ fingers pointing to words in book
From Chalkbeat Colorado Student & School Performance
Find your 2023 CMAS scores by school or district
Colorado released scores from standardized tests given to public school students this spring.
By Yesenia Robles and Erica Meltzer
 
A teacher points to information on a white board as her students sit on the floor in front of her.
From Chalkbeat Colorado Assessment and testing
Colorado state test scores show slow recovery from COVID disruptions
But 2023 CMAS results also show worrying signs that many students are still struggling, and that recovery is uneven. Here’s everything you need to know.
By Erica Meltzer, Melanie Asmar, and 1 more
 
A student sits in a chair with one leg propped up and a carton of milk nearby, reading a hardcover copy of “The Hate U Give” with its book jacket taken off.
From Chalkbeat Indiana Student & School Performance
IREAD scores for Indianapolis school districts stagnant and well below pre-COVID levels
Schools where third graders improved on the state reading test highlighted strategies like summer learning, literacy coaches, and tutoring.
By Amelia Pak-Harvey
 
young girl using a digital tablet at her desk in a classroom
From Chalkbeat Indiana Student & School Performance
New IREAD results show Indiana students’ reading scores have barely changed in three years
The results match scores from a separate state test, the ILEARN, that also showed student performance has stagnated in reading.
By Aleksandra Appleton and Jade Thomas
 
A man in a black hat and a black shirt touches paper on a desk as a boy in a blue shirt looks on.
From Chalkbeat Indiana Tutoring
Indiana increases its maximum award for tutoring grants and makes more students eligible
Indiana Learns, the state tutoring program that launched last fall, will now be open to students in grades 3-8 who meet certain requirements.
By Jade Thomas
 
Students walk through the hallway in a high school, all wearing masks due to COVID protocols.
From Chalkbeat New York School segregation / integration
Tensions flare over NYC high school admissions at parent meeting
A parent council passed a resolution calling for seventh grade state test scores to be used once again in admissions among other changes, despite some public protest.
By Julian Shen-Berro
 
A tray under a student’s desk seat is filled with books and workbooks. The student, whose legs are present in the image, is wearing rainbow-colored shoes.
From Chalkbeat Tennessee Politics & Policy
From buildings to budgets, here are five key issues facing Memphis-Shelby County Schools this year
Memphis students return to classes for a new school year that could turn out to be pivotal.
By Laura Testino
 
In the foreground, a student raises their hand. Their face is not visible. In the background, a teacher writes on the whiteboard in a middle school classroom.
From Chalkbeat Chicago Student & School Performance
Chicago public schools with more empowered principals saw more test score growth, better school climate: study
The findings suggest that schools can benefit from more empowered principals, who are “closer to the ground” and may have a better sense than district leaders of what their students need.
By Reema Amin
 
Students run in a stairwell decorated with letters with faces.
From Chalkbeat Chicago Assessment and testing
In Chicago’s early state test results, encouraging gains and some areas of concern
The district’s preliminary scores on the Illinois Assessment of Readiness show improvement after COVID-era dips.
By Mila Koumpilova
 
Three young students sit together at four desks and work on computers while a teacher stands behind to supervise them. One desk is empty.
From Chalkbeat New York Assessment and testing
NYC’s 5th and 8th graders must take spring’s state tests on computers. Are schools ready?
By 2026, all NYC students in grades 3-8 will take their state exams via computer. Here’s what that means and how some teachers feel about it.
By Eliana Perozo
 
Eighteen elementary students take a standardized test at their desks while a teacher watches.
From Chalkbeat New York Student & School Performance
New York’s state test scores will be late this year. Here’s why it matters.
Schools will need to determine which students receive additional academic support without the standardized test scores, under a newly amended state regulation.
By Julian Shen-Berro
 
Two young students write on a poster board on the ground as an adult peers overhead to review their work.
From Chalkbeat Tennessee Assessment and testing
Memphis TCAP scores show modest gains, with English results stagnating
Improvement in math tracks statewide trend, but proficiency rates lag behind pre-pandemic levels.
By Laura Testino, Tonyaa Weathersbee, and 1 more
 
hands on computer keyboards
From Chalkbeat Tennessee Student & School Performance
TCAP scores are in for Tennessee school districts. See how your district did.
Results offer localized snapshot of how school systems are doing with pandemic recovery.
By Marta W. Aldrich and Thomas Wilburn
 
A woman in jeans and a black top with blonde hair stands in the middle of a classroom where several children are sitting at desks.
From Chalkbeat Indiana Assessment and testing
2023 ILEARN scores: See test results from Indiana schools
Use this table to see how Indiana students in grades 3-8 did on 2023 ILEARN test scores for math, English and the subjects combined.
By Aleksandra Appleton
 
Two students sit in a classroom looking at laptop screens on a desk. There are charts on the wall in the background.
From Chalkbeat Indiana Student & School Performance
2023 ILEARN scores show Indiana students improving in math, but stagnating in reading
ILEARN test scores show Indiana reading proficiency rates have dropped back to 2021 levels after gains in 2022.
By Aleksandra Appleton
 
A person in a white shirt stands in front of a white board in a classroom. Students sit in desks in front of the person.
COVID and Schools COVID and Schools
Recent school year saw little academic recovery, new study finds
It’s a concerning indication that the steep learning losses seen since the pandemic have proven difficult to ameliorate and could have lasting consequences.
By Matt Barnum
 
Students write with pencils.
From Chalkbeat Tennessee Assessment and testing
Tennessee’s TCAP test scores climb for second straight year after pandemic
The results suggest that Tennessee’s early investments in summer learning camps and intensive tutoring are paying off.
By Marta W. Aldrich and Kae Petrin
 
Young students cast long shadows on the sidewalk as they head in for their first day of school.
From Chalkbeat New York Student & School Performance
New York state wants to rethink how it evaluates schools. Here’s what could change.
The public health crisis paused state testing, impacting how the state typically evaluates schools.
By Reema Amin
 
A students hand is shown alongside a passage written by the girl about why a cat is not an insect.
From Chalkbeat Tennessee Assessment and testing
For some Memphis 3rd graders, reading retest brings better news
About 500 students initially flagged for possible retention did well enough to move directly to 4th grade.
By Laura Testino
 
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