INDIANAPOLIS (AP) _ Indiana students made modest improvements across the board in last year's ISTEP tests.

Scores released by the Indiana Department of Education on Monday show that 74.7 percent of students passed both the math and English tests, up one percentage point from 2013. Students showed the strongest gains in the English and language arts portion of the test, with 80.7 percent passing.

Schools Superintendent Glenda Ritz said in a statement that the improvements show the “great learning that is happening in Indiana.''

Education leaders are bracing for a possible drop in scores in the coming years as the state adopts new tests conforming to federal requirements. A new test will be used this coming school year and a second test will be developed for the 2015-2016 school year.