Indiana test results: 1 in 4 EVSC third-graders are falling behind in reading

Jon Webb, Evansville Courier & Press
Updated ·4 min read
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EVANSVILLE – Evansville schoolchildren's reading ability trails the statewide average, according to newly released results from the state's IREAD-3 test.

Only about 74% of Evansville Vanderburgh School Corp. third-graders tested as proficient in reading, combined results of the spring and summer tests showed. That's about 7% below the statewide average of 81.6% – meaning almost 1 in 5 students statewide, and 1 in 4 locally, aren't able to fully read by the end of third grade.

Statewide, 14,805 students didn't pass.

"This is a crisis that could have a long-term negative impact on Indiana’s economy and negative repercussions throughout our society," Indiana Secretary of Education Katie Jenner said in a Wednesday news release.

Like many other schools statewide, EVSC's Black and Hispanic populations scored lower than the corporation overall. The former posted about a 54% pass rate, with the latter coming in at 55%. Accusations about racial biases in standardized testing have subsisted for decades.

Income appeared to be a factor, too. Almost 85% of students who pay for school lunches passed, compared to only 66% of those who receive free or reduced lunch.

EVSC's scores trailed other area public school corporations:

  • Warrick County: 94.2%

  • North Posey: 93.4%

  • Mount Vernon: 91.6%

  • East Gibson: 86%

  • South Gibson: 85.5%

  • North Gibson: 82.8%

In a statement, EVSC spokesperson Jason Woebkenberg said the corporation has hired "20 highly trained reading specialists" to "work with students and provide support to teachers" to help improve reading proficiency.

"The EVSC is committed to investing in early literacy development," he said in part.

How the test works

Third-graders take the exam in the spring, but are given a chance to retest in the summer. This year's rates come from the best cumulative scores of those two waves, and also include grades from any student who preemptively passed the test in second grade.

Some students, including those still learning the English language or children with disabilities, aren't forced to retest if they don't pass.

According to sample questions posted on IDOE's website, students are given a series of multiple choice questions. Sometimes they're presented with a word and asked to pick another that has the same beginning or ending sounds. Other times they may be tasked with choosing a word that completes two disparate sentences.

The _____ is coming down the track. You can _____ your dog to fetch the newspaper.

Then there are times when students read passages and use context to choose words to fill in the blanks of a sentence, among other prompts.

"The Indiana Reading Evaluation and Determination (IREAD-3) is designed to measure basic reading skills and reading comprehension based on Indiana Academic Standards," the IDOE website reads. "Test design is centered on understanding these standards, collaborating with Indiana Educators to define content priorities and evidences of mastery, and creating key documents that define the assessment."

The passing rate has been dropping for a decade

After the COVID-19 pandemic, statewide scores dropped sharply. Scores plunged from a 87% pass rate in 2018-19 to an 81% mark in 2020-21, when Indiana resumed I-READ after a one-year break.

But the numbers began their dip well before then. In 2012-13, the first school year with the test, 91.4% of Indiana third-graders passed, according to state figures. Courier & Press archives, however, lists that figure that year at 84%.

EVSC posted a 79.6% passage rate that year, the paper reported.

The pandemic brought a new level of scrutiny of the test, and made some question whether it was necessary. After the test was canceled in the COVID-shortened year, former Indiana Superintendent of Public Instruction and current gubernatorial hopeful Jennifer McCormick said the state should ditch the test for good.

Instead, she wanted to assess a student's ability to read over several years, from grades 3-8, Chalkbeat reported. Standardized tests in general have been heavily criticized for years, since they try to enforce one-size-fits-all approaches on an impossibly diverse array of students.

"Our charge at the department is to eliminate burden for you,” McCormick told school leaders during an April 2020 webinar. “We are trying to be realistic and sensible about assessment.”

In the news release, Jenner said schools and the public at large had "no time to waste" when it came to improving scores.

"We must urgently work to improve reading outcomes for Indiana students," she said in part, "including supporting both current and future educators with the knowledge and tools necessary to teach our students to read using evidence-based literacy instruction, rooted in science of reading.”

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Test results: 1 in 4 EVSC third-graders are falling behind in reading