(Idaho Department of Education Press Release, November 2, 2026)
Results from the third administration of the updated Idaho Reading Indicator (IRI) show strong continuous improvement in K-3 literacy, with students in grades 1-3 making gains in overall proficiency. The impressive fall-to-fall improvements come a year after the Idaho Department of Education contracted with assessment vendor Amira Learning to administer a more rigorous assessment that provides detailed scoring insights.
The Idaho Reading Indicator measures early literacy skills in phonics, phonemic awareness, fluency, vocabulary, and reading comprehension for students in kindergarten through third grade each fall and spring. This year’s fall assessment cycle provides a point of comparison to scores from the first administration of the Amira assessment in fall of 2025.
Compared to previous versions of the IRI, the Amira-supported assessment offers teachers a more detailed evaluation of students’ reading skills, facilitating analysis of multiple indicators of proficiency. It also calls on students to respond in ways that are more constructive and applied, calling on deeper learning and more advanced test-taking skill when compared to the multiple-choice format that previous versions of the assessment used.
“Though we’re not surprised to see Idaho students continuing to improve, we are very pleased to see our continued investments in early literacy continue to pay off for our youngest learners,” said Superintendent of Public Instruction Debbie Critchfield. “We can now demonstrate improvements beyond the baseline that was established during the fall 2025 assessment administration.”
Highlights from the 2026 fall IRI assessment include:
- A nearly 70% proficiency rate amongst third graders means students are retaining the early literacy skills from the year before and are more prepared to use reading as a learning tool in higher grades
- Proficiency rates for economically disadvantaged students climbed from 47.8% in 2025 to 51.8% in 2026.
- Proficiency rates for English learners went from 30.1% in 2025 to 33.8% in 2026
- Proficiency rates for special education students went from 28.3% in 2025 to 32.8% in 2026
| Fall 2026 | Kindergarten | Grade 1 | Grade 2 | Grade 3 | K-3 Overall |
| Below Grade Level | 26.72% | 18.1% | 16.8% | 15.66% | 19.1% |
| Near Grade Level | 29.43% | 21.9% | 17.9% | 14.56% | 20.7% |
| At Grade Level | 43.85% | 60% | 65.3% | 69.78% | 60.2% |
| Fall 2025 | Kindergarten | Grade 1 | Grade 2 | Grade 3 | K-3 Overall |
| Below Grade Level | 37% | 21.44% | 22% | 20% | 25% |
| Near Grade Level | 19% | 22.21% | 17% | 14% | 18% |
| At Grade Level | 44% | 56.35% | 61% | 66% | 57% |
“I am proud that Idaho’s five-fold increase in literacy funding is paying off. Children need a strong start in reading for our investments in education to have the biggest impact. Learning to read proficiently early on is one of the most important building blocks for future success. These results show the progress we’re making, and our parents and teachers are so deserving of our appreciation. We will keep working to ensure every Idaho student has the skills to succeed in school and in life,” Governor Brad Little said.
Idaho is one of only a handful of states that track both literacy growth and achievement for early learners, and historic investments in early literacy have led to consistent growth in proficiency. The funding increase from $13.1 million in 2019 to $72.8 million in 2025, combined with the Idaho Department of Education’s recent investment in teacher training in the Science of Reading (SoR) through the Striving to Meet Achievement in Reading Together (SMART) Project, have directly benefited student outcomes in early literacy.
The Department is committed to ensuring students enter first grade with the essential early literacy skills needed to be successful. Last week, we hosted the Readiness Zone Summit. National experts presented valuable information about how young students learn and how we can best prepare them for first grade. Parents, educators, and communities can access the summit here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhzRjV8BZI0
“The improvements we are seeing are so much more than a number on a report or a point on a graph,” said Critchfield. “These results are about our students: their educational careers, their plans after high school, and their futures building careers, lives, and families in Idaho and beyond.”
Statewide and local fall IRI results can be accessed on the Idaho Report Card at https://www.idahoreportcard.org/.
