Reading scores show slow—but steady— improvement in early grades.

The most recent beginning-of-year data show overall progress in reading readiness for K–2 students. Insights show:

  • More young readers are on track and fewer are far behind than at any time since the pandemic.
  • K–2 students who are far behind at the beginning of the school year, but on track by the end of the year, are likely to stay on track through third grade.
  • Overall, fewer than half of K–2 students are on track to learn to read, a troubling national trend.
An adult helps a child read a book at a table. The child is writing, and the adult is smiling. The setting resembles a classroom, with windows in the background.

Explore Amplify’s beginning-of-year research brief.

Bar chart showing percent success rate at end of year: Kindergarten at 51%, Grade 1 at 26%, titled "Likelihood of catching up during the school year.

Learners most likely to catch up

Among K–2 students who began the year far behind in learning to read and caught up by the end of the school year, students in the earlier grades demonstrated greater gains.

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Bar graph showing the percent of kindergarten students on track, with values ranging from 31% to 40% across five bars.

Modest year-over-year improvement

Fewer than half of K–2 students are on track to learn to read, more than at any time since the pandemic, but not surpassing 2019–20 early reading levels.

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Bar chart showing 67% of Kindergarten and 64% of Grade 1 students who caught up during the school year were successful at grade 3 by year-end.

Early progress and later outcomes

Students who began K–2 far behind in learning to read but caught up by the end of their grade were more likely to stay on track through the third grade.

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Research briefs for the 2024–2025 school year

October 2024

BOY: Summer instructional loss highlights the importance of quality core instruction for the youngest grades.

Read the brief

February 2025

MOY: Early literacy gains offer hope for COVID recovery, though broader literacy challenges persist nationwide.

Read the brief

July 2025

EOY: Reading scores rise overall; gender disparities present a complex picture.

Read the brief

October 2025

BOY: More students start the school year on track for learning to read, though momentum is slow.

Read the brief

Read more research and case studies.

Amplify’s high-quality programs benefit millions of students every day using methods that are evidence-based, ESSA-aligned, and showing efficacy in a variety of contexts. Read more research and case studies and see more briefs on early literacy.