This is the first installment of a three-part Delaware LIVE series examining Delaware’s literacy results, announced by the State Department of Education this week; the changes required to reach the state’s 2028 goal; and the expanding responsibilities of local school boards.

Third-grade proficiency rose 1 percentage point, leaving Delaware with a 13-point gap to close in two years

 

Editor’s note: This is the first installment of a three-part Delaware LIVE series examining Delaware’s literacy results announced by the State Department of Education this week, the changes required to reach the state’s 2028 goal and the expanding responsibilities of local school boards.

By George D. Rotsch  Editor, Delaware LIVE.

DOVER, Del. — Delaware students made modest progress in reading on the latest statewide assessments, but the results show the state remains far from its goal of having 53% of third graders reading proficiently by 2028.

Third-grade English language arts proficiency increased from 39% in 2025 to 40% in 2026, according to results released by the Delaware Department of Education.  Note: the full report can be accessed online: https://news.delaware.gov/files/2026/08/State-Board-2026-Briefing-August-20.pdf

Across grades 3 through 8, English language arts proficiency increased from 41% to 42%.

The movement is positive, but the larger result remains concerning: Six in 10 Delaware third graders did not meet the state’s grade-level proficiency standard.

Delaware now needs to gain another 13 percentage points over the next two testing cycles to reach its 2028 target.

State highlights literacy-coaching gains

In an announcement this week, the Department of Education emphasized results from schools receiving state-supported literacy coaching.

All eight schools with literacy coaches and comparable third-grade results improved from 2025 to 2026. Those schools averaged gains of nearly 7 percentage points, compared with the 1-point statewide increase.

Johnson Elementary School in the Red Clay Consolidated School District and Las Américas ASPIRA Academy each posted 12-point gains. Gateway Charter School improved by 11 points.

The department said those results give state and local leaders reason to examine the relationship among literacy coaching, instructional materials, school leadership and classroom practices.

The results do not prove that coaching alone produced the improvement. Changes in leadership, curriculum, enrollment, attendance and student intervention also may have contributed.

The proficiency level after an increase also matters. Johnson Elementary, for example, improved from 3% to 15%. That is a substantial one-year gain, but it means 85% of the school’s third graders remained below proficiency.

State calls progress modest

The state’s announcement acknowledged that Delaware’s overall performance remains inadequate.

“A one-percentage point statewide increase is not the win,” Education Secretary Cindy Marten said. “The more important question is what we learn from schools where students are moving faster and what we change where students are not making enough progress.”

Marten said Delaware must study schools showing stronger improvement and apply those lessons more broadly.

The department also said proficiency remains below where students need it to be, progress is uneven and achievement gaps remain significant.

Schools highlighted for improvement should be studied, the department said, but their results should not be interpreted as evidence of statewide success.

Understanding what the numbers mean

Julia Keleher, executive director of First State Educate, said statewide averages are an important starting point, but the work of a local school board begins with understanding what those results look like for the students and schools it governs.

“The statewide result tells us the size of Delaware’s literacy challenge, but every board needs to understand its own results,” Keleher said.

School boards are responsible for establishing the outcomes they expect for students and monitoring whether the district is making progress toward them. “State assessment results give boards an annual measure of performance, but effective governance requires going further: understanding how the district performed against its goals, where results differ across schools and student groups, and what the superintendent is doing in response. Boards can then monitor progress throughout the year rather than waiting for the next annual assessment to know whether the district is on track.”, Keleher said.

Board members could ask

• What do these results tell us about progress toward our district’s student outcome goals?
• Where are students making progress, and where are they not?
• Are all student groups making progress toward the outcomes we established?
• What does the superintendent believe is driving the differences in performance, and what is the district doing in response?
• Are our budget, policies, and resources aligned with the outcomes we are trying to achieve?
• What will we monitor throughout the year to know whether the district’s strategy is working and students are on track

Keleher’s organization works with school board members on governance and data interpretation. It is one of several potential resources boards may use to understand local results and evaluate district strategies.

High school performance declines

The elementary results were accompanied by a decline in high school reading and writing performance.

Among students taking the SAT School Day assessment, generally administered in 11th grade, 44% demonstrated proficiency in evidence-based reading and writing. That was down from 47% in 2025.

SAT essay proficiency rose by 10 points to 43%.

The high school results suggest Delaware’s literacy challenge does not end after elementary school. Students who advance without strong reading foundations may face greater difficulty as assignments become more complex across English, history, science and other subjects.

Proficiency and growth are different

The results released this week measure proficiency—whether students met grade-level expectations.

Delaware will release student-growth results separately. Growth measures how much students improved academically, including students who made progress but remain below grade level.

Both measures are important.

Growth can show whether a student is catching up and whether an intervention is helping. Proficiency shows whether the student has reached the state’s grade-level standard.

The state’s 2028 third-grade target is based on proficiency.

A significant challenge remains

Delaware has recorded an improvement, but the state is not currently progressing fast enough to reach its goal.

The 2026 results provide encouraging examples that deserve further examination. They also raise difficult questions about schools where most students remain below the reading standard.

As Keleher noted, the next step is not merely acknowledging a statewide number. It is understanding what produced improvement in some schools and what must change in schools where progress remains limited.

 

Coming Thursday:

Delaware must raise third-grade reading proficiency by an average of 6.5 points in each of the next two years. Part 2 examines what that would require, how boards can measure progress between annual tests and whether the state has established sufficient accountability.

 

Delaware LIVE collaborates with a network of professional journalists to cover a diverse range of stories across various fields.  Staff Writers include experienced journalists and young professionals.  If you have questions, please feel free to contact [email protected] or our publisher, George D. Rotsch, at [email protected]