ACAP shows statewide ELA gains; board raises concern about middle‑grade math and fourth‑grade regression

Department staff presented statewide results from the ACAP summative assessments for English language arts, mathematics and science and briefed the Alabama State Board of Education on trends the department said merit further attention.

The department reported increases in English language arts proficiency across all tested grades this year and noted that the state is above 50 percent proficiency in several grades. Staff emphasized the improvement but also highlighted specific concerns: a decline in mathematics proficiency in second and third grades and a pattern some staff described as regression for a cohort moving from third to fourth grade in English language arts.

Staff pointed to the low percentage of students scoring at the top performance level (level 4) in middle‑school mathematics — single‑digit shares in seventh and eighth grades — and said about 55 percent of eighth graders are at level 2, which the department characterized as showing gaps that will make higher‑level algebra work difficult without additional supports.

Board members discussed drivers and remedies. Several members credited the Alabama Reading Initiative (ARI) and related reading coaching and practice assessment work for gains in early reading and third‑grade outcomes; staff and members said ARI coaching has concentrated on K–3 but acknowledged middle‑grade reading requires additional attention. The board discussed two levers: (1) expanding ARI or its resources to support fourth through eighth grade teachers in targeted sites and (2) funding additional reading interventionists who work directly with students.

The department noted $5 million in the current budget earmarked for middle‑level reading projects and said staff is embedding that work within ARI. Board members asked whether ARI coaches paid with those funds could be permitted to work with fourth‑grade teachers in the upcoming year as an initial step; staff said they will evaluate budget language and program rules and report back.

Members also discussed data use and continuity across grades. Staff confirmed schools can access historic student data in the statewide system and suggested districts that pair K–2 and 3–5 schools could more easily coordinate supports for transitioning students.

Next steps: department staff and ARI leadership will return with implementation options and a proposed plan for using ARI resources and the earmarked $5 million to address middle‑grade reading and to propose strategies for the second‑ and third‑grade math declines. The board asked staff to allow time for members to digest the data and asked for a detailed plan in a subsequent meeting.