2026 Rhode Island School Assessment and Accountability Results Show Gains in Math, Steadiness in Reading, and Continued Progress in Closing Achievement Gaps
Published on Friday, October 09, 2026
PROVIDENCE, RI – Governor Dan McKee, Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green, and the Rhode Island Department of Education (RIDE) today released Rhode Island’s 2026 assessment and accountability results, marking the first time the State has released the measures together to provide a more comprehensive picture of student achievement, school performance, and educational progress.
The 2026 results show Rhode Island students are maintaining their academic progress at a time when many states, the nation as a whole, and international education systems are experiencing significant academic challenges, generally resulting in downward trends.
According to the latest results, Rhode Island students continued to demonstrate steady progress across multiple measures. Students achieved gains in mathematics across several assessments, including a fifth consecutive year of improvement on the Rhode Island Comprehensive Assessment System (RICAS) in math. Science performance trended upward, chronic absenteeism continued to decline, and the state further narrowed achievement gaps for students with the greatest needs. At the same time, Rhode Island maintained relatively stable English Language Arts (ELA) performance despite national and international declines.
“At a time when academic performance is declining in many states, Rhode Island continues to protect our progress,” said Governor Dan McKee. “I set an ambitious goal for our students to meet or beat Massachusetts student achievement levels, and we've narrowed that gap significantly. Through Learn365RI, we're changing the culture around education and reinforcing a simple message: in every home, every day, learning matters. Our Attendance Matters RI campaign has helped students recover more than 4 million hours of learning, and our 21 new Community Learning Centers will create more opportunities to learn beyond the school day. Thanks to the hard work of our students, families and educators, we've put Rhode Island on a real path to reach our goal and built a strong foundation for continued progress.”
"Rhode Island's 2026 assessment results reflect both the progress our students are making and the continued challenges they are experiencing,” said Commissioner Angélica Infante-Green. "There is much more work to do, and the broader context tells a much bigger story of resilience for the Ocean State. At a time when states across New England, the nation - and even countries around the world - are reporting academic declines, our state continues to improve student math achievement, is holding the line in ELA, and is leading by example in our efforts to continue to reduce chronic absenteeism. None of this progress can happen without the hard work of Rhode Island’s amazing students, families, and educators.”
“The Rhode Island Board of Education recognizes that sustained progress is essential to long-term success. While there is still work ahead, these latest results demonstrate that Rhode Island is moving in the right direction and should stay the course,” said Rhode Island Board of Education Chair Michael Grey. “At this critical moment, it is more important than ever that we work hand in hand with students, families, and educators to build on this progress, especially at a time when many states are experiencing backsliding.”
“Our latest results show that investments in high-quality instruction, improved attendance, evidence-based literacy practices, and high-quality math learning opportunities are making a difference and keeping our progress steady,” said Council on Elementary and Secondary Education Chair Patti DiCenso. "At the same time, we are clear-eyed that we still have work ahead of us, and the Council on Elementary and Secondary Education will continue collaborating closely with our partners to ensure Rhode Island students continue to thrive and succeed.”
RICAS Results (2026)
The latest results show Rhode Island students in grades 3 - 8 continuing to achieve gains in math and attendance while further narrowing longstanding achievement gaps. On RICAS, math proficiency increased by 0.4 percentage points to 31.8%, marking a fifth consecutive year of improvement and continuing Rhode Island's climb beyond pre-pandemic performance levels in math. RICAS ELA proficiency decreased slightly by 0.6 percentage points to 33.1%, though results remain relatively stable.
SAT and PSAT Results (2026)
On the SAT, math proficiency for students in grade 11 increased by 0.2 percentage points to 23.5%, while ELA proficiency decreased by 3.8 percentage points to 47.8%. On the PSAT, math proficiency for grade 10 increased by 2.8 percentage points to 29.3%, and ELA proficiency increased by 1.2 percentage points to 56%. These results reflect challenges at the secondary level seen nationally and internationally. Massachusetts reported a 6-percentage point decline in grade 10 ELA proficiency this year, underscoring the ongoing challenges many states are experiencing in high school performance.
Science Results (2026)
Rhode Island students also demonstrated resilience in science achievement. In 2026, 31.1% of students met or exceeded expectations on the Next Generation Science Assessment (NGSA), an increase from 30.8% in 2025. These results come amid broader national and international concerns about science performance, including a national four-point decline in grade 8 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) Science scores since 2019.
Chronic Absenteeism Continues to Decline; Assessment Data Shows Academic Recovery is Possible with Improved Attendance
The latest results also show continued improvement in student engagement and attendance. Through Rhode Island’s nationally and internationally recognized Attendance Matters RI campaign, in School Year 2025-26, chronic absenteeism declined by 2.4 percentage points from the previous year and has fallen by 14.4 percentage points since its pandemic-era peak. With improved attendance, Rhode Island students have recovered more than 4.4 million instructional hours.
The data continue to show a strong relationship between attendance and academic success. Students who were not chronically absent outperformed their chronically absent peers by between 16.9 and 25.1 percentage points across RICAS, PSAT, and SAT assessments. Just as importantly, Rhode Island's data show that attendance can improve and that students can get back on track academically. Students who were chronically absent in 2022-23 but improved their attendance in subsequent years met RICAS expectations in 2025-26 at rates 15.8 percentage points higher in ELA and 19.8 percentage points higher in mathematics than students who remained chronically absent for four consecutive years.
RI’s Achievement Gap with Massachusetts Continues to Narrow; Nearly Closed for Economically Disadvantaged Students
Since 2018, Rhode Island has made steady progress in closing the achievement gap with Massachusetts, regarded as the top performing state in the country. According to the latest results, in ELA for grades 3-8, Rhode Island's performance has remained relatively stable, with 33.7% of students meeting or exceeding expectations in 2018 compared to 33.1% in 2026. Massachusetts ELA declined from 51.0% to 40.0% over the same period. As a result, the ELA gap narrowed from 17.3 percentage points to 6.9 percentage points, a reduction of approximately 60%. In math, Rhode Island improved from 27.3% to 31.8%, while Massachusetts declined from 47.7% to 41.1%, reducing the gap from 20.4 percentage points to 9.3 percentage points, a decline of 54%.
The progress has been even more pronounced among economically disadvantaged students. Since 2018, Rhode Island has increased ELA proficiency for economically disadvantaged students from 18.6% to 20.3%, while Massachusetts declined from 31.7% to 21.7%, shrinking the gap from 13.1 percentage points to just 1.4 percentage points. In math, Rhode Island improved from 13.5% to 18.7%, while Massachusetts declined from 27.4% to 21.4%, reducing the gap from 13.9 percentage points to 2.7 percentage points.
National and international assessments have pointed to significant reading challenges among students, with experts citing a combination of factors including the lingering effects of pandemic-related learning disruptions, persistent mental health challenges, increased technology-related distractions, and attendance rates that remain above pre-pandemic levels.
School Accountability - Majority of Schools 3-Star Rating and Above
School accountability results incorporate multiple indicators, including achievement, growth, graduation rates, English language proficiency, attendance, and other school quality measures, to provide students, families, and school leaders comprehensive pictures of school performance.
The 2026 accountability results show that 56% of Rhode Island schools earned a 3-star rating or higher. Elementary schools continue to perform well, with 66% receiving 3-stars or higher. While achievement remains an area requiring continued focus, the results indicate that most Rhode Island schools are meeting expectations across multiple measures.
Seven CSI Schools Exit; Fewer Providence Students Learning in CSI Schools than Before the Intervention
In 2026, seven schools exited Comprehensive Support and Improvement (CSI) status, a federal designation for the lowest performing schools.
Notably, the Providence Public School District (PPSD) has 6,200+ (70%) fewer students attending traditionally identified CSI schools than it had prior to the 2019 state intervention, which ended on June 30, 2026. Additionally, PPSD has the fewest number of CSI schools recorded for the district under the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which was signed into law in 2015.
CTE Expansion
The results also highlight that, since 2018, there has been a 293% increase in the number of graduating seniors in Rhode Island who earned at least one industry-recognized CTE credential, reflecting continued growth in career-focused learning opportunities and workforce readiness.
5-5-5 Club
RIDE is recognizing five schools as members of the state's "5-5-5 Club," which is reserved for schools that have reduced chronic absenteeism by at least five percentage points while simultaneously increasing student performance in both ELA and math by at least five percentage points.
This year's honorees include:
- Dr. Joseph A. Whelan Elementary School in North Providence
- Kevin K. Coleman Elementary School in Woonsocket
- Matunuck Elementary School in South Kingstown
- Walter E. Ranger Elementary School in Tiverton
- Nurses Institute Middle College Charter High School
Full 2026 assessment results can be accessed on RIDE’s Assessment Data Portal.
Full 2026 accountability results can be found on RIDE’s Report Card Portal.
###