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Indiana’s latest IREAD results show the largest single-year improvement since the test began in 2013, with 87.3% of third graders demonstrating proficient reading skills. That’s a 4.8 percentage point increase from last year, returning scores to pre-pandemic levels.
State officials credit the jump to expanded reading instruction, earlier testing in second grade, and a new law that makes it harder for students who don’t pass to advance to fourth grade.
IREAD — short for Indiana Reading Evaluation and Determination — is a statewide assessment given each spring to measure whether third graders have the foundational reading skills needed to succeed in later grades. The exam focuses on core literacy abilities, including phonics, phonemic awareness, vocabulary, fluency and comprehension. Under state law, students who do not pass by the end of third grade may be held back unless they qualify for a specific exemption.
This year, all second graders took IREAD for the first time, giving educators and families an early look at whether students are on track.
State leaders say the goal is to ensure 95% students pass the test by 2027.
Contact WFYI education editor Eric Weddle at eweddle@wfyi.org.
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