Alabama Schools Post Gains in Reading, Math Under Mackey

MONTGOMERY, Ala. (Day.News) — Alabama students showed broad gains in reading proficiency across every tested grade during the 2024-25 school year, with fewer landing in the lowest Level 1 performance category, State Superintendent Dr. Eric Mackey told the State Board of Education on July 9.[1] The Alabama Comprehensive Assessment Program (ACAP) results, administered in spring 2025 to grades 2-8 in English language arts and math, plus science in grades 4, 6 and 8, revealed second-graders dropping one percentage point in Level 1 while fourth-graders improved by three points.[1] High school juniors' ACT scores held mostly steady, with the state composite dipping slightly from 17.4 to 17.3, though English proficiency edged up.[1] Math progress emerged particularly among low performers, with Level 1 declines in nearly all grades, building on Alabama's six-point national gain in fourth-grade math from 2019 to 2024 — one of only five states to improve.[1][4] Proficiency hovered around 50% for second- and third-graders but fell to just over 25% in seventh and eighth grades, where seventh-grade rates stalled at 19% and advanced Algebra I enrollment may skew eighth-grade figures.[1] Science scores advanced in sixth and eighth grades, held steady in fourth and dipped slightly for 11th-graders, with Mackey linking reading boosts to better comprehension of content-heavy texts.[1] The Class of 2024 notched a 91% graduation rate, up alongside college and career readiness metrics, as Mackey highlighted during the board's work session.[1][5] English learner numbers swelled to nearly 51,000 students in 2025 from 41,000 in 2022, yet exit rates from support programs rose to 5.3% from 4.6%.[1] Mackey praised teacher efforts and state investments in materials, professional development and math standards rewrites, urging stability in the ACAP system for reliable trends.[1][2] District-level data awaits August release post-verification, but Mackey deemed the results 'more positive than negative,' reflecting momentum in districts from Mobile to Huntsville.[1] He projected English learner enrollment hitting 55,000 by 2026, underscoring needs in Birmingham City Schools and rural areas like those in the Black Belt.[1]