NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Tennessee made historic gains this year in third grade reading proficiency and now they're offering strong support for your children if needed. The Tennessee Department of Education says this comes after a lot of kids and schools were, and still are, impacted by COVID's learning system.
The department says the historic increase is credited to the launch of a new K-3 literacy strategy in public schools. Before the pandemic, only one-third of third graders in Tennessee had met expectations on the TCAP in English Language Arts.
This year the department of education says they're seeing the largest percentage of third grade students scoring in the top performance category in over a decade.
It's the largest increase in a single year of third graders whose ELA scores met or exceeded expectations since Tennessee updated its ELA academic standards in 2017. Forty percent of third grade students scored proficient in ELA – a 4.3 percentage point increase from last year with overall proficiency growing by almost eight percentage points from 2021 decreases impacted by the pandemic.
Third grade students who scored “below” on the last TCAP will be prioritized and are eligible for support to get them up to speed. Families can find timeline information on the department’s website and coordinate with their children's school to make decisions about next steps at this link.
The Department of Education says this has been easy work, but it shows if they stay the course, we can make a positive difference.
