District reports spring I-Ready results; officials say gains across grades but gaps remain

District staff presented the 2024-25 I-Ready universal screener results for kindergarten through eighth grade and described how the data will guide instruction and interventions for students who are below grade level.

"This is one data point that we use to guide our instruction, to make decisions, to guide professional development and learning for our teachers," the presenter said. Staff emphasized that the screener is administered three times per year (fall, winter, spring) for grades 1'8 and that kindergarten takes a state-dictated screener twice.

Officials said the district recorded "significant gains across the board in both reading and math," while also noting there remain students two or more grade levels behind who will need longer-term interventions. The presenter explained the district's tiered approach to support: Tier 1 instruction for all students, Tier 2 small-group interventions and Tier 3 additional supports for students who need more intensive work.

Board members asked how the information follows students into high school and what other data points are used. Staff replied that I-Ready results are rolled up year-to-year and are made available to receiving grade-level teachers and that formative and summative classroom assessments and phonics checks (K'3) are also used. "We were at 70 to 75% of our students on grade level for phonics district wide," the presenter said as an example of other data points informing instruction.

A board member asked specifically about middle school reading: the presenter clarified how the green/yellow/red I-Ready categories map to on-grade, one-grade-below and two-or-more-grades-below and noted that catch-up is typically possible within a single school year for students one grade below.

No board vote followed the presentation; staff said administrators will use the data in school- and grade-level planning over the summer and into the next school year.