ST. PAUL — Each year, as they did last month, state officials release scores from the Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment tests. But why are the tests important, how are they used, and what should parents know about them?

Test results from the 2024-2025 school year showed Minnesota student proficiency levels in math and reading stayed relatively flat from the previous year. Statewide, 45.2% of students met or exceeded standards in math and 49.6% met or exceeded standards in reading, both slightly down from the previous year.

Science test results will be released in the fall, after the first year of instruction following newly revised academic standards.

The MCAs are standards-based assessments. That means they evaluate what students have learned by the end of a grade. But they are one da

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