2026 State Test Score Results Data Series
The 2026 State Test Score Results Data Series is published by the Education Data Center and is designed to provide updates on 2026 state assessment data.
What to expect: Our goal is to provide high-level insights on ELA and math state summative assessment outcomes for students in grades 3-8. We will publish overviews as State Education Agencies (SEAs) publicly release assessment results and/or as we receive aggregate results via public records requests.
For additional information about each state assessment, please see the end of this post. All available 2026 assessment data used for this data series will be published by the EDC in December.
Questions, comments, or suggestions? Let us know at info@eddatacenter.org!
Trends Over Time
Yesterday (August 19), Colorado released the 2026 CMAS results for students in grades 3-8. Unlike the majority of states, Colorado has administered the same assessment for the past decade, allowing proficiency rates to be compared over many years. Results are reported across five achievement levels, from did not meet expectations (level 1) to exceeded expectations (level 5).
In 2026, ELA and math continue to demonstrate two distinct patterns: math proficiency rose across each of grades 3-8, while ELA proficiency fell in all grades but two.
ELA: Approximately 44.7% of students in grades 3-8 reached proficiency (levels 4 + 5) on the CMAS assessment in 2026, showing little change from 2025 and not yet reaching the pre-COVID peak of 45.8%. All grades declined in ELA except for Grade 5 (+1.9 percentage point) and Grade 4, which rose 5 percentage points from 42% to 47%.
Math: At 37.3% proficiency in 2026, students in Colorado have reached the highest achievement levels on the CMAS math assessment than at any other time in the past decade. Every grade level improved at least slightly, led by Grade 8 (+3.1pp) and Grade 4 (+2.5pp). Not only did overall proficiency levels improve, but the proportion of students scoring in level 1 also fell (from 16% to 15%).
The ELA declines in Grades 6-8 were not isolated to any one student group, but instead were evident across nearly all student groups. Statewide, students in Grade 6 reached 41.6% proficiency in ELA, the lowest level since 2017.
In contrast, a press release from the Colorado Department of Education describes the math gains as the “clearest bright spot” and noted improvement across many student groups:
“Mathematics continued its multi-year upward trajectory across most elementary and middle school grades in 2026. Improvement was evident across many student groups, including Black students, Hispanic students, and students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch.” (CDE press release, 2026)
We are starting to see a small but widening gender gap in mathematics post-pandemic, with male achievement outpacing gains among female students (+3pp for males in 2021, compared to +5pp for males in 2026).
—> For more details on the CMAS results, Chalkbeat provides some detailed reporting here.
Results by Achievement Level
A Closer Look at 2026
State Assessment Background
Assessment Name: Colorado Measures of Academic Success (CMAS)
Additional Information:
CMAS assessment resources can be found here: https://ed.cde.state.co.us/assessment/cmas
CMAS results are available from the Louisiana Department of Education (LDOE) here: https://ed.cde.state.co.us/assessment/cmas/cmas-dataandresults
The CDE 2026 press release can be found here: https://ed.cde.state.co.us/newsbureau/newsrelease/student-achievement-growth-results-2026
Data presented here are specific to this state’s assessment and are not comparable to assessments administered by other states. For questions, please reach out to info@eddatacenter.org.
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