Colorado schools continue math improvements, while reading and writing progress stalls
Colorado continues to see solid improvements with its standardized math testing, but the same can’t be said for reading and writing.
The Colorado Department of Education on Wednesday released student growth results and achievement data from the spring Colorado Measures of Academic Success (CMAS), PSAT and SAT assessments.
Colorado’s overall percentage of students meeting or exceeding math standards grew from 35.9% the prior year to 37.3%, continuing a four-year streak of improvement. Students’ performance on the English Language Arts (ELA) exam remained mostly flat, changing from 44.8% last year to 44.7%.
State education officials lauded bright spots in particular grades and subject areas but acknowledged the work left to be done.
“We should recognize the gains we are seeing, particularly in math and upper-elementary literacy, while being clear that we have much more work to do,” said Colorado Education Commissioner Susana Córdova in a news release.
“Too many students are still not meeting grade-level expectations, and longstanding gaps remain far too wide. Our challenge now is to build on what is working and accelerate progress — especially for the students who have the furthest to go.”
El Paso County school districts mirrored statewide trends of improving their math assessments, while a handful reported minor dips in ELA, according to a Gazette analysis of state data.
Every large district in the county, those with more than 6,500 students, reported slight improvements to their math percentages that range from 0.1% in Widefield District 3 to 2.8% in Academy District 20.
Most of these same districts also improved their overall ELA scores, with gains ranging from 0.2% in School District 49 to 3.2% in Manitou Springs District 14. Only Lewis-Palmer District 38, Colorado Springs District 11 and Harrison District 2 declined — percentages ranging from 1.8% to 3.3%
The CMAS tests are based on the Colorado Academic Standards and measure how well students have mastered their grade-level expectations in math and English language arts in grades 3-8 and science in grades five, eight and 11. 2026 marked the first year of social studies being tested in only the seventh grade.
The SAT and PSAT tests are administered in grades 9-11 to assess students’ college readiness.
Of the Colorado students who participated in the all spring tests combined, the percentage who met or exceeded state math expectations increased in every grade except 11th grade. These percentages ranged from 41.5% to 31.6%.
ELA scores tell a slightly different story. Other than fourth and fifth grades, CMAS scores dropped in every grade, ranging from 1.2% to 2.6%. Reading and writing percentages in ninth and 10th grades reported slight improvements, while 11th grade decreased by about 1%. Unlike CMAS tests, PSAT and SAT assessments include only selected responses and require no written responses.
Last year’s results yielded statewide levels at or above those predating the COVID-19 pandemic, except for fourth grade in ELA and eighth grade for ELA and math. This year saw vast improvements for the former, increasing by 5%, while the latter improved its math percentage by 3.1% but saw its ELA fall by 1.7%.
Science scores in the fifth, eighth and 11th grades, the only three that are tested, all yielded slight decreases of 2.9%, 1% and 0.2%, respectively.
The spring social studies results marked the first year of testing with revised state standards and established new baseline expectations. In this first year, 25.6% of fourth graders met or exceeded these expectations, along with 36.6% of seventh graders tested.
Participation in the tests also improved to the highest mark since the pandemic at 89.4% and continued a trend of growth since testing was canceled in the 2019-2020 school year. The all-time high for CMAS participation was 94.4% in 2019.
Colorado Springs data
The best-performing district in the state based on the spring scores was Cheyenne Mountain District 12, which saw notable improvements in its ELA and math scores. The former increased from 66.2% last year to 69.3% this year and the latter from 60.2% to 65.3%.
D-12 Superintendent David Peak told The Gazette in an email that the district is “extremely proud” of this year’s results, while noting that the “scores represent only one measure of student learning.”
“Ultimately, our work extends well beyond assessment results. We want students to be deeply engaged in their learning while continuing to pursue the arts, athletics, activities and other experiences that contribute to a well-rounded education,” Peak said. “Our goal is to ensure every student is known, challenged, supported and able to grow academically, socially and emotionally.”
Academy District 20 was also among the top-performing districts with an ELA percentage of 61.8% and a math percentage of 54.7%, ranking eighth in the state.
Colorado Springs’ top 10 performing schools from the spring assessments include five from D-20, four from D-12 and one from D-11, with Chipeta Elementary School once again posting the highest percentages for math and ELA.
The area’s lowest performing schools include seven from D-11 and one each from School District 49 and Harrison D-2.
After reporting solid gains in math and ELA in the four prior years, 2026 marked the first year that D-11 experienced a decline in its overall ELA percentage. D-11 Superintendent Michael Gaal noted the test scores were part of the state’s overall performance framework that also includes graduation rates and reduced dropout rates, where the district has improved over the same time frame.
He told The Gazette that the diverse student populations the district serves — like Orton Academy’s dyslexic student body or students with unstable home lives — can magnify academic challenges and learning losses that take years to recover, while test results alone may not reflect overall academic growth.
With that being said, he explained how the district moved some of its central office staff into its underperforming schools for direct academic support, established individual passing periods in schools with behavioral problems, identified classrooms that need different sets of supports and increased preparation time ahead of the new school year.
Regarding instructional improvements, D-11 implemented a new framework based on the educational service company Instructional Empowerment’s Model of Instruction for Deeper Learning last year as part of a pilot study, which yielded higher scores in STAR assessments, another academic measurement used by schools.
The results from the trial year will soon be released as a case study and the district plans to implement this framework into all of its schools.
Other data points by composite score
Colorado Springs area district rankings:
- Cheyenne Mountain D-12: 64.60
- Academy D-20: 58.25
- Lewis-Palmer D-38: 55.00
- Manitou Springs D-14: 50.10
- School District 49: 40.70
- Widefield D-3: 36.75
- Colorado Springs D-11: 34.50
- Fountain-Fort Carson D-8: 30.95
- Harrison D-2: 28.80
Colorado Springs area top schools:
- Chipeta Elementary School (D-11): 73.70
- Discovery Canyon Campus Middle School (D-20): 70.05
- Broadmoor Elementary School (D-12): 70.05
- Explorer Elementary School (D20): 69.55
- Pinon Valley Elementary School (D-12): 69.50
- Chinook Trail Elementary School (D-20): 69.50
- Gold Camp Elementary School (D-12): 69.25
- Edith Wolford Elementary School (D-20): 67.50
- Foothills Elementary School (D-20): 67.35
- Cheyenne Mountain Elementary School (D-12): 67.30
Colorado Springs area bottom-ranking schools:
- Orton Academy (D-11): 4.10
- Galileo Middle School (D-11): 10.20
- Nikola Tesla Education Opportunity School (D-11): 10:30
- ALLIES (D-49): 10.40
- Adams Elementary School (D-11): 11.20
- Monroe Elementary School (D-11): 11.30
- Stratton Meadows Elementary School (D-2): 12.00
- Spark Online Academy (D-11): 12.95
- Jack Swigert Middle School (D-11): 13.35
Top-rising school from 2025:
- Rogers Elementary School (D-11): 27.70
- Turman Elementary School (D-2): 27.60
- Mountain View Academy (D-49): 25.40
- Edith Wolford Elementary School (D-20): 22.70
- The da Vinci Academy School (D-20): 21.80
Top school declines from 2025:
- Taylor Elementary School (D-11): -31.60
- James Irwin Elementary School — Howard (D-11): -31.20
- The Vanguard School (Elementary) (D-2): -26.10
- TCA College Pathways (D-20): -23.60
The Gazette’s Michael Braithwaite provided the data analysis of Colorado Measures of Academic Success test scores.