Commissioner of Education Angélica Infante-Green | Rhode Island Department of Elementary and Secondary Education
The Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) has released the final results of the 2025 state assessments, including the Rhode Island Comprehensive Assessment System (RICAS), which measures student proficiency in English Language Arts (ELA) and mathematics for grades 3-8. The data show continued improvement in both subjects, as well as a decrease in chronic absenteeism across the state.
Math proficiency among students increased from 30.1% in 2024 to 31.4% in 2025, surpassing pre-pandemic levels recorded at 29.8% in 2018-19. ELA proficiency also rose from 30.8% to 33.7%, nearing the pre-pandemic figure of 38.5%. Compared to data from 2017-2018, ELA achievement has returned to its previous level.
A total of 31 Local Education Agencies (LEAs) have reached or exceeded pre-pandemic achievement levels in math, while nine have done so in ELA; nine LEAs achieved this milestone in both areas.
Governor Dan McKee commented on the progress: “By supporting high-quality learning opportunities both in and out of the classroom, my Administration has made education a top priority and we’re seeing real results,” he said. “When I challenged RIDE to help Rhode Island meet or exceed Massachusetts student achievement levels by 2030, many thought that goal was ambitious. But now we’re making measurable progress, and we’re not letting up. Together we will continue reinforcing that in every home, every day, learning matters."
Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green highlighted recent improvements: “Rhode Island students have experienced consistent academic growth over the past three years due to the hard work of our educators, families, and partners,” she said. “We are seeing real momentum in our classrooms, and we’re especially proud that results for most student groups, regardless of background, showed growth this year. RIDE has prioritized strengthening our supports for students and teachers alike and promoting excellence in teaching and learning. We know that there is more to do. Our state has momentum and our progress will continue.”
Most student subgroups—including multilingual learners, differently-abled students, economically disadvantaged students, and those recently exited from MLL services—showed academic gains over the past year according to assessment data.
The Education Recovery Scorecard published earlier this year found Rhode Island leading academic recovery efforts regionally; nationally it ranked fourteenth for math recovery and thirteenth for reading.
Massachusetts continues to rank highly for public education performance nationwide; however, Rhode Island’s latest RICAS results indicate a narrowing gap between states’ scores on both ELA and math assessments compared with Massachusetts MCAS scores released earlier this week.
In math specifically, Rhode Island reduced its gap with Massachusetts by another 1.5 percentage points this year; for ELA the gap decreased by 0.6 percentage points as both states improved their scores. Currently there is a difference of about 9.3 percentage points between states’ math scores and eight points for ELA.
Since 2018 Rhode Island has closed half of its academic achievement gap with Massachusetts across both subjects.
If considered alongside local agencies within Massachusetts based on percentile rankings using test data from both states since 2018 through this year’s cycle—Rhode Island’s standing rose from tenth percentile status seven years ago up into thirtieth percentile territory today for each subject area assessed.
Other standardized tests administered statewide include PSAT/SAT exams (grades ten/eleven), Next Generation Science Assessments (NGSA), Dynamic Learning Maps (DLM), as well as ACCESS testing designed specifically for multilingual learners assessing English language proficiency across four domains: listening/reading/speaking/writing.
SAT results show an increase over last year: SAT ELA proficiency rose by nearly four percentage points while math saw a smaller gain; PSAT math improved but PSAT ELA declined slightly compared with previous cycles.
NGSA science assessment outcomes remained largely unchanged overall while DLM scores—which measure performance among students requiring significant special education support—decreased modestly across all tested subjects relative to prior years amid rising numbers identified as differently abled statewide.
ACCESS testing revealed incremental improvement at higher English proficiency levels among multilingual learners since last reporting period—with gains exceeding those seen before pandemic disruptions began several years ago.
Five schools were recognized under RIDE’s “5-5-5 Club” initiative after cutting chronic absenteeism rates by at least five percentage points alongside boosting academic performance equivalently within one school year:
Elementary/Middle:
– Excel Academy
– Gaudet Learning Academy
High Schools:
– Beacon Charter Schools
– Blackstone Valley Prep High School
– South Kingstown High School
RIDE stated it will maintain focus on strategic priorities such as expanding mental health resources through partnerships like Hazel Health’s virtual services platform; introducing new attendance tracking dashboards; reducing absenteeism further via campaigns like Attendance Matters RI; providing Khan Academy District tools system-wide at secondary level—all aimed at strengthening instructional quality going forward.
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