NYC student reading scores plunge as only half can read at grade level

Cayla Bamberger and Emma Seiwell, New York Daily News on Aug 7, 2026

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NEW YORK — Reading scores of New York City public school students plummeted this past school year, erasing improvements in the subject recorded a year before, data released Friday showed.

Only about half of all students in grades three through eight scored as proficient in English Language Arts — a drop from about 56% scoring proficient the year before. Alarmingly, scores for the youngest students, third graders, in particular, dropped 14 points, with just 44% scoring proficient in the subject.

About 57% of the students scored proficient in math, only a 0.1% increase from the year before.

The dramatic downswing comes as the city’s public schools are still in the process of overhauling how they teach reading. In 2023, NYCPS launched NYC Reads, which it called a “research-centered, phonics-based approach to literacy instruction.”

“Our goal remains universal literacy, and we are staying the course with NYC Reads and the science of reading,” Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels said in a statement. “Our educators also rely on nationally normed screeners to understand students’ progress, tailor instruction and provide additional support where it’s needed. These results raise important questions and deserve careful, rigorous analysis so we can ensure we’re measuring what students are learning.”

Officials said they have begun a “deeper analysis” of the unprecedented fluctuations.

Mary Vaccaro, United Federation of Teachers vice president for education, said the city should not continue with the curriculum changes that have been implemented.

“We have to refocus on what we know works in literacy — a clear plan, a tailored science of reading curriculum, and meaningful professional development for educators. That recipe yields results,” Vaccaro said in a statement.

“This past school year, the system abandoned that approach,” she continued, “and, with no real plan in place, simply piled on additional programs, assessments, consultants’ recommendations and curriculum in the hopes that ‘more’ would equal better, and we lost ground.”

Maria Odom, executive director of Advocates for Children of New York (AFC), said the new data raises “more questions than answers.”

“What is clear is that the work is far from done — with only around half of students reading proficiently and glaring disparities between student subgroups,” Odom said. “There are no silver bullets in education and true change does not happen overnight.”

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