A report released Feb. 25 by the curriculum and assessment company Amplify calls out the urgency of implementing data-driven instruction if local educational agencies want to improve literacy outcomes and close achievement gaps.
Results from assessments delivered in the middle of the academic year provide educators an opportunity to pivot their instruction to ensure students truly understand the material they’re learning before the school year ends.
“Middle-of-year assessments are an ideal window for schools to analyze student performance, identify any needed adjustments in instruction, and implement them in time to catch students up before the start of the next academic year,” said Amplify Chief Academic Officer Susan Lambert. “Schools that have meaningful data — from a universal screener — can make more informed decisions about how to support students who are most at risk for reading difficulties.”
According to the report, which draws on data from more than 3 million students assessed with Amplify’s Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS) teacher-administered literacy assessment, 57 percent of K-2 students nationwide are on track to learn to read at the middle of the 2025–26 school year.
Progress overall is slow and incremental, researchers found. The data show year-over-year gains ranging from 0 to 2 percentage points across grades, with kindergarteners showing the most improvement, while progress for second graders more or less leveled off between 2024–25 and 2025–26. Neither first- nor second-graders have recovered to where they were before the pandemic.
To accelerate early reading outcomes, the report recommends:
- Universal screening: Administering assessments three times per year to monitor risk levels for reading difficulties
- Targeted resource allocation: Assigning staff to support at-risk students with additional literacy instruction beyond grade-level requirements
- Evidence-based instruction: Ensuring staff are trained in the science of reading and implementing high-quality core curriculum
- Progress monitoring: Regularly tracking at-risk students and making real-time instructional adjustments
