LANSING, Mich. (WOWO) — Michigan students are continuing to struggle with reading proficiency, with statewide results from the latest standardized tests showing declines across grades three through seven.
Only 38.2% of Michigan third graders were proficient in English language arts on the 2026 Michigan Student Test of Educational Progress, or M-STEP, according to results released Friday.
That’s down from 38.9% in 2025 and represents the lowest third-grade reading proficiency rate in the 12-year history of the M-STEP.
The results come as Michigan moves forward with a series of literacy reforms intended to improve reading instruction and student achievement.
State Superintendent Glenn Maleyko tells Bridge Michigan the latest numbers make clear that more work is needed.
“We need to improve the results of all these assessments for our students moving forward,” Maleyko said. “Michigan proficiency rates are not where we want them to be.”
He said the state needs to see improvement “in all subjects and areas, and in all grades” and that progress needs to be demonstrated consistently over time.
Reading performance declined from the previous year among fourth through seventh graders as well.
Looking across grades three through eight, approximately 44% of Michigan students were proficient in reading, based on an analysis of M-STEP and PSAT 8/9 results.
Math performance was lower overall, with 35.5% of students in grades three through eight reaching proficiency.
The math results were mixed. Proficiency increased among third and sixth graders, declined in fifth grade and remained essentially unchanged in fourth and seventh grades.
The Michigan Department of Education said most year-to-year changes were relatively small.
In a statement accompanying the results, the department said most proficiency rates were “essentially flat” compared with 2025. Of the 20 tests administered, results on all but four remained within two percentage points of the previous year, with most changing by less than one percentage point.
There were additional declines in fifth-grade science and social studies, while eighth-grade students improved in social studies but saw lower science proficiency.
Among 11th graders, science and social studies results improved, while reading and math performance declined.
The results also highlight persistent differences based on students’ economic circumstances.
Third-grade reading proficiency among students who are not economically disadvantaged was more than twice the rate among economically disadvantaged students.
The disparity was even more pronounced in third-grade math. About 28.8% of economically disadvantaged students were proficient, compared with 60.5% of students who were not economically disadvantaged.
Education advocates say the latest numbers underscore the need for continued investment and accountability.
Brian L. Love, state director of EdTrust-Midwest, called the results “extremely troubling” while pointing to recent increases in funding for students considered at risk and changes to literacy policy.
Love said funding by itself will not be enough and called for greater accountability and transparency to ensure education dollars reach students in their schools.
Venessa Keesler, president and CEO of Launch Michigan, said the state has taken steps in the right direction, including legislation requiring literacy training for kindergarten through fifth-grade educators.
She said the disappointing results reflect a system that has not historically been structured for success, while arguing that Michigan is now making changes intended to address those problems.
Individual districts are seeing a mix of results.
Detroit Public Schools Community District, Michigan’s largest school district, reported gains in both reading and math at the third-grade level. Reading proficiency increased from 12.9% to 14.1%, while math proficiency increased from 15.7% to 20.1%.
Grand Rapids also recorded a small increase in third-grade reading proficiency, from 19.6% to 20.1%. Third-grade math proficiency increased from 19.6% to 23.5%.
The Lansing School District saw reading proficiency improve in grades three through six, although proficiency declined among seventh- and eighth-grade students.
Ypsilanti Community Schools generally saw small declines, although fifth- and seventh-grade English language arts results improved.
The district’s eighth graders taking the PSAT showed one of its largest gains in reading, with proficiency increasing from 39.8% to 46.8%. Eighth-grade math proficiency nearly doubled, rising from 10.1% to 19.5%.
Ypsilanti Superintendent Alena Zachery-Ross said the district’s own assessments, which are administered multiple times throughout the school year, provide a more encouraging picture of student progress.
“We’re seeing that 80% of our scholars are growing,” she said, noting that many students enter the district already behind academically.
District officials also pointed to attendance as an important factor.
Nearly half of Ypsilanti’s students are considered chronically absent, meaning they miss at least 18 days during a 180-day school year.
Assistant Superintendent Carlos Lopez said students with strong attendance perform significantly better on both state and district assessments.
“Attendance matters,” Lopez said.
Ypsilanti has also increased its focus on curriculum, teacher training, intervention and tutoring. The district has adopted HMH Into Reading, one of the curricula approved by the state.
In Kentwood Public Schools, Superintendent Kevin Polston said test scores are an important source of information but should not be viewed as the only measure of student achievement.
“It’s important for us to take time to digest the data, look at the other sources of data for the things that matter for us, and keep designing plans for each of our individual students to thrive in Michigan,” Polston said.
Kentwood has experienced a mixture of gains and declines in English language arts, while math performance has generally improved. The district is in its third year using a new mathematics curriculum.
Michigan officials are continuing to develop additional statewide strategies.
The Michigan Department of Education plans to release a Michigan Mathematics Framework this fall. The framework is expected to establish a statewide approach to mathematics instruction, curriculum and assessment.
The department is also creating a committee focused on science, technology, engineering and mathematics, commonly known as STEM.
At the same time, Michigan’s literacy overhaul is still being implemented.
New requirements call for school districts to use evidence-based reading instruction and screen students for characteristics associated with dyslexia by the 2027-28 school year.
A new law signed this summer also requires elementary teachers to complete science-of-reading training by the 2031-32 school year. Some districts are expected to receive state assistance as teachers complete the required training.
Michigan is also providing funding for literacy coaches, approved curriculum and teacher training.
The state has established requirements concerning the use of vetted literacy curricula. Districts using a curriculum that is not on the state’s approved list must notify parents, and failure to comply can result in the loss of state funding.
The Michigan Department of Education says, however, it does not currently have a system requiring districts to report which literacy curriculum they use.
The latest test results are the first released since Maleyko became state superintendent in December.
Maleyko stressed that improving student achievement will require cooperation among educators, school districts, the Legislature, the governor and the State Board of Education.
He also cautioned against interpreting proficiency scores as a simple measure of whether an individual child can read.
Delsa Chapman, a deputy superintendent with the Michigan Department of Education, said a student who does not reach the state’s proficiency benchmark is not necessarily unable to read.
She explained that the tests measure whether students demonstrated mastery of the state’s academic standards at the time they took the assessment.
The M-STEP and related assessments are administered at different grade levels.
Students in grades three through seven take English language arts and math assessments. Fifth graders also take science and social studies tests.
Eighth graders take the PSAT 8/9 for English language arts and math and take the M-STEP for science and social studies.
Ninth graders take the PSAT 8/9, while 10th graders take the PSAT 10.
Eleventh graders take the SAT and WIN Readiness Assessment, along with M-STEP science and social studies tests.
Some students with disabilities take the MI-Access assessments instead.
The latest results arrive as Michigan continues its effort to improve literacy statewide.
For now, the numbers show that those changes have not yet produced a broad turnaround in reading proficiency.
And with third-grade reading reaching its lowest M-STEP level on record, state education leaders are acknowledging that the challenge remains substantial.
