Students in many of Mississippi’s youngest classes will soon complete the first of three new tests designed to gauge preschoolers’ readiness for kindergarten.
The Mississippi Legislature passed the Literacy-Based Promotion Act in 2013, requiring educators to emphasize grade-level reading skills as students progress through elementary school.
The LBPA is most widely known for its implementation of the third-grade reading gate testing, which requires students to pass a literacy test in third grade to be eligible for promotion to fourth grade unless they qualify for a good-cause exemption. Mississippi Department of Education officials say kindergarten readiness tests are the first step to ensuring students are on track by that time.
“It’s important for parents to know that we’re trying to help their students early using these tools, and they should meet and discuss with the teachers regularly about their students’ growth and performance on universal screeners to help determine their specific needs,” K-3 Assessment Coordinator Melissa Beck told the Mississippi Free Press on Sept 9.
Mississippi made national news in 2023 after the National Assessment of Educational Progress test results showed it improved from being ranked the second-worst state for fourth-grade reading in 2013 to 21st in 2022. NAEP is a test that the United States Department of Education administers periodically to fourth and eighth graders. Scores are often used to compare academic achievement across states. The state’s progress inspired many to call it the “Mississippi Miracle.”
‘We’re Trying to Prevent Students From Falling Behind’
The Mississippi Department of Education has contracted with Istation, which offers computer-based early literacy assessments. Istation replaces Renaissance Learning, which had been providing the test for Mississippi since the 2014-2015 school year. MDE has mandated that all students in publicly-funded pre-kindergarten take the universal screener within the first 30 days of school enrollment. They test twice more near the middle and end of the school year.
The Istation assessment is designed around the science of Reading. Mississippi has become a leader in literacy education after a statewide adoption of that program showed major improvements in closing the achievement gap. Beck says that universal screeners are often the first picture of reading performance for children.
“The purpose of a universal screener is to identify students who may need additional assistance,” Melissa Beck said. “We’re trying to prevent students from falling behind in reading. So if we identify early, then we can provide those students the additional support they need to become a skilled reader by third grade.”
She said students listen to passages and then select the appropriate answer. If students answer correctly, the test provides harder questions. If they do not, the test continues with questions at the same skill level or below.
“It is computer adaptive to find where their Zone of Proximity is,” Beck told the Mississippi Free Press on Sept. 9.
MDE Expects Upward Trend to Continue
Istation Chief Revenue Officer Rich Watson said the Istation software is specially designed to be child-friendly and easy to use. that The state will pay approximately $460,000 a year for the program, he added.
“It’s very dynamic. It’s easy to get into,” he told the Mississippi Free Press on Sept. 3. “It’s engaging. There are lots of fun characters, even throughout the assessment experience, because, as you know, a lot of times, kids won’t perform their best or to their complete ability level if they’re not engaged with the experience. And so we’ve done quite a bit to focus on that.”
The new test gives schools the option to test in both literacy and math.
“In the past, the kindergarten readiness assessment has been our literacy screener with maybe four or five math items on it,” Melissa Beck told the Mississippi Free Press on Sept 9. “And now that’s two separate assessments.”
Students who do not make above a designated cut score are provided interventions to help move them toward kindergarten readiness. Teachers may also decide from the test results if a child needs other diagnostic testing.
“We have a robust AI built around the Science of Reading program that is very specific to allowing children to read out loud and provide immediate, very deeply researched, science-backed micro-interactions with a child,” Watson said.
The Mississippi Department of Education’s emphasis on kindergarten Readiness appears to be paying off. MDE released assessment data in July which showed that 67.2% of pre-K students in MDE’s Early Learning Collaboratives met the end-of-year target score in spring 2024, compared to 64.8% in spring 2023; 60.8% of students in other public pre-K programs met the end-of-year target score in spring 2024, compared to 64.5% in spring 2023.
This was also the first year that results from the State Invested Pre-K program, pre-K programs for 4-year-old children in districts that are not part of the Mississippi Department of Education’s (MDE) Early Learning Collaborative program, were included in the annual Kindergarten Readiness Update. 64.2% of SIP pre-K students met the target score in spring 2024.
“Mississippi’s early childhood educators continue to improve achievement among our kindergarten and pre-K students,” State Superintendent of Education Dr. Lance Evans said in a July 18 press release. “The MDE expects this upward trend to continue as we implement strategies and enhance our support for teachers statewide.”
Beck said that parents should look for notifications that their child has been tested and the results.
“Parental notification is required with the Literacy-Based Promotion Act, and so every time your student takes this universal screener, you should see a report or a letter come home, letting you know as a parent how your child is performing—whether they’re on track, they’re behind or they’re on ahead,” Beck said. “That’s important for parents to note where (their children) are. Districts have 10 days after testing to send out a notification of how the student did.”