As Michigan reading scores fall again, state superintendent is clear: ‘We need to improve.’
Michigan third grade reading scores continued to slide in the state’s most recent standardized tests this year, even as schools begian to implement reading reforms. Just 38.2% of third grade students in Michigan are proficient in English Language Arts, down from 38.9% the…
In Michigan, third grade reading proficiency has hit a new low on the state's standardized tests, with just 38.2% of students scoring proficient, down from 38.9% the previous year. This marks the lowest performance in the 12-year history of the Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress (M-STEP). The drop comes as schools have implemented reading reforms, including literacy coaches, teacher training, and a retention law for struggling third graders.
Fourth and seventh grade reading scores have also declined, with only 44% of students in these grades now proficient. State Superintendent Glenn Maleyko emphasized the need to improve test results, stating that Michigan's proficiency rates are not where they should be and that steady improvement across all subjects and grades is necessary.
Math proficiency saw a slight improvement in third and sixth grades, but declined in fifth grade. Science and social studies scores for fifth and eighth graders decreased. Eighth graders showed improvement in social studies but fell in science, while 11th graders increased their proficiency in social studies but dropped in reading and math.
The Michigan Department of Education (MDE) plans to release a mathematics framework and create a STEM committee, but literacy improvements are still in the works.
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