Record-high 77.3% of Mississippi third graders pass state reading assessment on first attempt in 2025

NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release:  May 15, 2025

Record-high 77.3% of Mississippi third graders pass state reading assessment on first attempt in 2025

JACKSON, Miss. – The Mississippi Department of Education announces that 25,399 or 77.3%, – the highest-percentage ever – of third graders passed the initial administration of the third-grade reading assessment given this spring for the 2024-25 school year.

“These results are outstanding. The MDE applauds all educators and families across the state that make literacy a priority,” said Dr. Lance Evans, state superintendent of education. “With a continued emphasis on the science of reading as well as implementation of high-quality instructional materials, we believe Mississippi students will continue to make progress.”

A total of 32,839 third graders took the assessment. In 2023-24, 75.7% of third graders passed the initial administration of the reading assessment. After the final retests in 2023-24, 84% of third graders passed the test.

In accordance with the Literacy-Based Promotion Act (LBPA), third graders who do not pass the initial administration of the reading test are given up to two attempts to retest. Students who did not pass the initial reading assessment retested in early May. The second retest window is June 16 – 27.

The LBPA became law in 2013 to improve reading skills of kindergarten through third-grade students in public schools so every student completing the third grade is able to read at or above grade level. The LBPA requires Mississippi third graders to pass a reading assessment to qualify for promotion to fourth grade. Some students may qualify for good cause exemptions to be promoted to fourth grade.

An amendment to the law in 2016 raised reading-level expectations starting in the 2018-19 school year, requiring third graders to score at level three or higher on the reading portion of the Mississippi Academic Assessment Program (MAAP) English Language Arts (ELA) assessment.

To see the district- and school-level initial pass rate report for 2024-25, go to mdek12.org/publicreporting/2024-25/.

Final district-level pass rates will be published this fall in the Literacy-Based Promotion Act Annual Report of Performance and Student Retention for the 2024-25 school year.

Find all MDE news releases at mdek12.org/news.

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Media Contact:

Jean Cook, APR
Chief of Communication
601-359-3515
jcook@mdek12.org

Shanderia Minor
Public Information Officer
601-359-3515
sminor@mdek12.org