Newark families should receive delayed 2026 state test scores in October

Newark families are set to receive their children's scores from last spring's state tests around October 7, according to Superintendent Roger León during Thursday's school board meeting. The state provided the results on September 18, following the students' return to class on September 8. The district's data team is currently reviewing the scores, with paper copies of individual student reports expected to reach schools by October 9.

However, the timing of when families will receive their copies has not been specified. These results will provide families with a clearer understanding of their children's reading and math performance, and will also offer valuable insights to Newark educators, who lacked this information at the beginning of the school year as they strive to improve student achievement.

Last year, 34% of Newark students in grades 3-9 met the state's standards in English language arts, compared to 53% statewide. In math, 21% of Newark students met the standards, as opposed to the state's average of 53%. This year, New Jersey introduced the NJSLA-Adaptive, an online assessment that adapts the difficulty of questions based on a student's answers. The new scoring benchmarks and approval from the New Jersey Board of Education are the reasons for the delayed score release.

The delayed scores will serve as a focus for the district's upcoming training for teachers and school leaders, as they will not be available at the start of the school year. Additionally, the results will indicate whether Newark students have maintained their reading and math gains from last year, when pass rates improved but were still below 2019 levels.

Moreover, Newark has received $400,000 from the state this year to expand tutoring for students who are struggling in both subjects, complementing the district's existing initiatives to tackle pandemic learning loss.