Michigan’s third graders have struggled to pass the state’s annual assessment every spring, with the proportion of students passing the test declining nearly every year since the test’s inception. In 2025, 38.9% of third graders who took the test in spring 2025 scored proficient or higher, according to newly released scores. Third grade reading is regarded among experts as pivotal for a student’s success — the time when a student needs to transition from learning to read, to reading to learn. But proficiency levels didn’t decline in every public school or district. According to an analysis by the Detroit Free Press, some public schools and districts have made progress over the past six years.
