Mississippi Department of Education officials on Aug. 21 told the State Board of Education that statewide proficiency on the Mississippi Academic Assessment Program (MAP) edged down in all four tested subjects in 2024–25 and outlined actions the department will take to stabilize and improve student outcomes.

The decline was described as modest in many grades but notable in fifth- and eighth-grade math and third-grade English language arts. Doctor Eric Vandiford, who presented the jointly prepared results for the accountability and academic offices, said the department will examine trends over multiple years rather than relying on a single-year snapshot.

"The trend is your friend," Vandiford said, summarizing a Technical Advisory Committee recommendation that the board view year-to-year fluctuation in the context of longer-term trends. He said the department is already conducting post-assessment analyses with its vendor and TAC to investigate possible causes for the changes.

Why it matters: statewide assessments are the principal metric the department uses to track academic progress and to target support. A shift away from multi-year gains — even small ones — prompts additional review and changes to statewide supports that affect hundreds of districts and thousands of classrooms.

What MDE will do: presenters described six main strategies across math, literacy and science: expand targeted coaching in low-performing schools; emphasize implementation fidelity for high-quality instructional materials (HQIM); add professional learning for teachers and administrators; increase use of intervention (rather than remediation) strategies; recruit retired teachers as temporary/math specialists; and grow system-level coaching capacity through cohorts and academies.

For math, the department plans to concentrate on grades 2–6, which officials called the "make-or-break" window for building the computational fluency and conceptual understanding required for later algebraic work. The department said it will serve 37 math-focused schools in 28 districts this year, expand its coaching academy, and pursue monthly coach-of-coach meetings.

On literacy, officials said they have increased the number of literacy coaches in schools from 65 to 95 since last year and will continue expansion. Department staff emphasized the science of reading and said they are working with educator-preparation programs to align pre-service teacher training with the methods they are promoting in service.

Alternate assessment (MAP-A) compliance: Vandiford and State Superintendent Doctor Robert Evans said MDE is addressing long-standing federal concerns about Mississippi's rate of participation in the alternate assessment for students with significant cognitive disabilities. Vandiford said the department commissioned an independent study, and officials are implementing corrective actions after a recent waiver denial from the U.S. Department of Education. "We want to do an autopsy of what we're doing," Evans said, describing the agency's approach to identifying procedural and capacity issues that may be contributing to higher participation rates.

The department noted that federal sanctions — including withholding funds — are a possible outcome if participation rates are not reduced, and officials said they are coordinating across MDE offices to implement short- and long-term fixes including revised guidance, trainings for special-education directors, and item-development work to move MAP-A to an online platform when appropriate.

Discussion versus action: the board received the results as an information item; no formal board action was taken at the Aug. 21 meeting. MDE staff said they will release the full district- and school-level MAP reports after the meeting and will return with follow-up items and implementation updates.

Background: MAP tests are administered statewide in grades 3–8 in ELA and math, in grades 5 and 8 for science, and as end-of-course assessments in high school for algebra I, English II, biology and U.S. history. The department reports results as scale scores and proficiency-level percentages.