Third Grade Reading Proficiency

• The percentages of third graders in Washington and Chisago Counties meeting or exceeding the reading standard were substantially higher than the state average.
• Despite Washington and Chisago Counties’ relatively strong performance, more than one-third of third-graders in both counties, did not meet the reading standard.
• Because Minnesota and Wisconsin measure 3rd grade reading proficiency in different ways, results from the two states cannot be compared.

• All of Wisconsin’s St. Croix River Valley counties exceeded the state average of 3rd graders rated as proficient or advanced in reading.
• The amount by which Pierce, Polk, and St. Croix Counties exceeded the state average for this variable was substantial.
• Only about half or less of the students in these four counties were rated as “proficient” or better.
• Because Wisconsin measure 3rd grade and Minnesota reading proficiency in different ways, results from the two states cannot be compared.

• Over time, both Chisago and Washington Counties have tended to exceed the state average with respect to the percentage of third graders rated as meeting or exceeding the reading standard.
• The proportion of students meeting or exceeding the 3rd grade reading standard has been falling over time in Minnesota as a whole and in Washington and Chisago Counties.

• Higher proportions of Pierce, Polk, and St. Croix 3rd graders have been rated as proficient or advanced than the state average over the 2015/16 to 2018-19 time period.
• Burnett County, which had been slightly below the state in terms of the percentage of its students rated as proficient or advanced in reading, surpassed the state average for the first time in 2018-19.
• The trendline for Wisconsin over this time period is slightly negative; there is no clear trend for Wisconsin’s St. Croix River Valley counties.

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