Knox County Schools students continue to improve across the board on TCAPs

Across all grades, for all student groups, Knox County Schools students have improved since last year on the standardized Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program test.

Student scores, released June 24, improved in English language arts, math, science and social sciences.

"We are not surprised to see across-the-board gains in every subject area," Superintendent Jon Rysewyk said in a press release.

Rysewyk touted the district's four priorities announced under his leadership in 2022 and said, "... we chose these priorities intentionally to define the work of an exemplary school district. The scores we’re seeing today are the direct result of the hard work of our teachers, students, and school leaders and their commitment to remaining focused on our four priorities."

Knox County's results

Here are some highlights from the data, shared by the district. All numbers are rounded to the nearest whole.

• English language arts: Districtwide, 41% of students scored proficient across all tested grades. This is an increase of less than 1% over last year and a little over 2% increase from the 2021-2022 school year.
• Science: Districtwide, nearly 48% of students scored proficient across all tested grades. This is a nearly 2% increase from last year and a nearly 4% increase from the 2021-2022 school year.
• Math: For grades 3-8, nearly 40% of students scored proficient. Districtwide results for math have not been released yet, due a standards change. This is an increase of nearly 2% from last year's grade 3-8 math proficiency and a 6% increase from the 2021-2022 school year. The other grades' results were not released.
• Social studies: Districtwide, a little over 49% of students scored proficient across all tested grades. This is a 0.5% increase from last year and a 1% increase from the 2021-2022 school year.

Statewide TCAP results

Elementary and high school students have recovered from a pandemic-related fall in scores. Middle school students are performing at about the same level as prepandemic, according to a data summary released by the Tennessee Department of Education. Many specific numbers were not explained by the state.

• English Language Arts: Overall, 39% of students met expectations, with gains in most tested grades.
• Science: Rates held steady for science, with a 1% increase in proficiency.
• Math: For grades 3-8, 40% of students met expectations.
• Social Studies: Students showed a 1% increase for all students tested.

What is the the TCAP exam?

The Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program is taken by students in grades 3-8.

Students are tested in four subject areas: English language, math, social studies and science. But for third graders, promotion to fourth grade is dependent solely on their English language scores.

Areena Arora, data and investigative reporter for Knox News, can be reached by email at areena.arora@knoxnews.com. Follow her on X @AreenaArora and on Instagram @areena_news