New Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program (TCAP) results released today show that Tennessee students continue to make meaningful academic progress, reinforcing the state’s position as a national leader in student achievement and academic recovery. 

“Once again, Tennessee is proving that meaningful progress is possible when leaders stay relentlessly focused on measurable student learning. Our students can and will achieve at high levels when we set high expectations, measure learning honestly, and refuse to lower the bar,” said Chelsea Crawford, Executive Director of TennesseeCAN. “When we stay focused on academics, students win.” 

While other states attempt to explain away a slow recovery from pandemic learning loss, Tennessee students have made a full recovery and exceeded pre-pandemic levels of student proficiency in math, English Language Arts (ELA), and social studies. TCAP results in science have not yet been released. 

According to newly released statewide assessment results, Tennessee students demonstrated:

• An increase in statewide ELA proficiency—now at 42% proficient— up from the 35% pre-pandemic rate in 2019 and the pandemic low of 29% in 2021. This year’s results include:
  • Overall proficiency increases across elementary, middle, and high school grades
  • 3.2 percentage point increase in 3rd grade
  • 2.7 percentage point increase in 8th grade
  • 3.8 percentage point increase in English II
• An increase in statewide Math proficiency— now at 41% proficient— up from the 37% pre-pandemic rate in 2019 and the pandemic low of 25% in 2021. This year’s results include:
  • Overall proficiency increases across elementary and high school grades, while results in middle school grades generally held steady
  • 3.6 percentage point increase in 4th grade math
  • 5.6 percentage point increase in Geometry for high school
• An increase in statewide Social Studies proficiency—now at 50% proficient—up 11.4 percentage points from the pre-pandemic rates in 2019. 

The results come as Tennessee continues to implement policies designed to improve student outcomes, increase transparency, expand educational opportunities, and strengthen accountability across the state’s education system.

With this new statewide assessment data available, educators, families, and policymakers have access to clear information about student performance and where additional support is most needed.  

Full results are available in the Tennessee Department of Education’s news release here.