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Students in Memphis-Shelby County Schools continue to improve on state standardized tests post-pandemic, with growth in scores in most categories in the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program, or TCAP, released Tuesday.
In an emailed statement, Memphis-Shelby County schools celebrated “steady growth” across almost all grades and subjects.
But reading and writing still pose a challenge for two key groups. High school English proficiency in the state’s largest district dropped and the majority of third grade students did not hit a critical reading benchmark.
These results are a bright spot for the district following a state legislative battle over control of MSCS. In the spring, Republican Rep. Mark White proposed a bill to create a state-appointed board to manage the district for at least four years, sharply criticizing its management and performance. The effort faced harsh criticism from Memphis locals, and eventually stalled in the Tennessee legislature.
“The 2025 TCAP results reflect more than a single year’s progress,” the district said in its statement. “They affirm a long-term trajectory of improvement and a deep-rooted belief that every student can achieve.”
The MSCS statement said district leaders “recognize areas of opportunity, particularly in the slight decline in English I and II,” the high school level reading and writing courses.
The district reported that 24.6% of all students met or exceeded expectations on TNReady reading assessments. That’s compared to 23.7% of students last year.
And just over 29% of students in grades 3-5 passed in reading. Tennessee law requires students to be held back or sign up for additional tutoring if they don’t hit those reading proficiency marks, though previous state data shows very few students are retained after completing intervention benchmarks like summer programs and tutoring.
Over 21% of all MSCS students also tested on track for math, up from 18.7% in 2024, MSCS leaders said. Algebra I and II students posted the largest gains.
“These increases reflect the district’s continued emphasis on algebra readiness, including the availability of 8th-grade Algebra I and summer Bridge Camps to prepare students for early success in advanced math,” MSCS said in the statement.
Statewide, around 40% of students met or exceeded TCAP proficiency in both reading and math. The six independent school districts that surround Memphis continue to outperform MSCS across the board.
Last year, well over half of the suburban students passed both math and reading sections. Here’s this year’s breakdown, for students in grades 3-8:
- Bartlett City Schools: 48.6% passed TCAP reading, 55.6% passed in math
- Germantown Municipal School District: 69% passed reading, 76.3% in math
- Arlington Community Schools: 69.8% in reading, 72.8% in math
- Millington Municipal Schools: 31.9% in reading, 33.4% in math
- Collierville Schools: 69.2% passed in reading, 73.5% in math
- Lakeland School System: 63.8% in reading, 66.4% in math
Interim Superintendent Dr. Roderick Richmond said in a statement that “growth is not optional” for the Memphis school district.
“At MSCS, we’re not waiting on greatness; we’re growing it,” he said. “The data confirms what we already know: we’re heading in the right direction. But good is not our goal.”
Bri Hatch covers Memphis-Shelby County Schools for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Reach Bri at bhatch@chalkbeat.org.
