TOPEKA — Kansas students showed improvement on the 2026 state English language arts and math assessments, with fewer students performing at the lowest level and more students scoring at proficient and advanced levels compared to 2025.
“These results are encouraging, particularly the reduction in the number of students performing at the lowest level in both reading and math,” said Kansas Education Commissioner Dr. Jake Steel. “While we have much more work to do, this is a positive step. Our focus remains on ensuring every Kansas student receives high-quality instruction in every classroom, every day, and that schools have the support they need to help students succeed.”
Performance Levels 1- 4 explained
Kansas introduced a new assessment in the spring of 2025 and as is standard practice, new cut scores were developed. The following performance levels, however, did not change: (Decreases in Levels 1-2 and increases in Levels 3-4 indicate positive direction.)
Level 1: A student at Level 1 shows a limited ability to demonstrate their knowledge and skills of (third, fourth, fifth, etc.) grade (ELA, math, science) standards.
Level 2: A student at Level 2 shows a basic ability to demonstrate their knowledge and skills of (third, fourth, fifth, etc.) grade (ELA, math, science) standards.
Level 3: A student at Level 3 shows a proficient ability to demonstrate their knowledge and skills of (third, fourth, fifth, etc.) grade (ELA, math, science) standards.
Level 4: A student at Level 4 shows an advanced ability to demonstrate their knowledge and skills of (third, fourth, fifth, etc.) grade (ELA, math, science) standards.
Progress in the “All Students, All Grades” categories for ELA and math
From 2025 to 2026, all Kansas students in grades 3-8 and 10th grade taking the ELA assessment had a 1.0 percentage point decrease in Level 1, the level showing a limited ability to demonstrate their knowledge and skills of grade-level content standards. There was a 1.46 percentage point increase in the number of all Kansas students scoring at proficient and advanced Levels 3 and 4 on the ELA state assessment from 2025 to 2026.
Math scores from 2025 to 2026 showed all Kansas students in grades 3-8 and 10th grade taking the state math assessment had a 1.8 percentage point decrease in Level 1 while students scoring at proficient and advanced Levels 3 and 4 had a 2.27 percentage point increase in their math scores.
Progress by grade level
Over the one-year period, the state’s 10th grade students had the highest decrease, 2.2 percentage points, in the number of students scoring in Level 1 in English language arts, the level showing a limited ability to demonstrate their knowledge and skills of grade-level content standards. The state’s seventh graders scoring in Level 1 had the second most notable decrease of 1.5 percentage points followed closely by fifth graders who had a 1.4 percentage point decrease. Third grade students scoring in Level 1 increased by 0.1 percentage point.
For students scoring proficiently and higher (Levels 3 and 4) on the English language arts assessment, the state’s 10th grade had the highest increase, 2.8 percentage points, followed by seventh graders with a 2.2 percentage point increase and eighth graders with a 2.1 percentage point increase.
On the 2026 state math assessment, Kansas fifth graders showed the largest one-year decrease in the percentage of students scoring in Level 1, dropping 2.6 percentage points. Fourth graders followed with a 2.2 percentage point decrease, while 10th graders saw a 2.1 percentage point decrease.
For students scoring proficiently and higher (Levels 3 and 4) on the math assessment, the state’s fifth grade students had the highest percentage point increase with 3.2, followed by 10th graders with a 3.0 percentage point increase and then fourth graders with a 2.4 percentage point increase.
KSDE also released a draft of, “What Matters Most,” its 2025-26 annual report that outlines the Kansas State Board of Education’s and KSDE’s shared vision for high-quality instruction and how the school improvement model is strengthening the connection between accountability and targeted supports for schools.
Notable points of data in the 2025-26 annual report
· Chronic absenteeism decreased again to 17.8%, a decrease of 1.7 percentage points from the 2024-25 to 2025-26 school years, and down from a high of 24.5% in 2021-2022 during the COVID years.
· The number of teacher vacancies decreased by 28% from 2,204 in the spring of 2025 to 1,588 during the spring of 2026.
· As of September 30, 2026, 14,851 Seals of Literacy have been added to educators’ licenses while more teachers and administrators are completing structured literacy training.
The 2025-26 state assessment data for reading and math for grades 3 – 8 and 10th grade can be found on KSDE’s Data Central webpage. The 2025-26 annual report, “What Matters Most,” is available here: https://www.ksde.gov/data-and-
