Nevada students showed continued improvement on state standardized tests — particularly on the math portion — they took in the spring, according to preliminary data released Tuesday by the Nevada Department of Education. But the state still faces an uphill battle to reach its goals.

The math proficiency rate on the Smarter Balanced assessments increased for grades three through eight— in other words, all grade levels that took the test — this year. Eighth-graders displayed the most growth, increasing their math proficiency rate by 12.07 percent to 29.57 percent.

Overall, students performed better on the English Language Arts (ELA) assessment as well, but the gains were not as dramatic. Seventh-graders were the only exception: That grade level’s proficiency level dipped by .12 percent to 46.95 percent on the ELA test.

Students are deemed proficient in the subject areas if they achieve a level three or four on the Smarter Balanced assessments, which are commonly referred to as the SBAC tests. All students in grades three through eight take the computer-adaptive tests.

State Superintendent Steve Canavero lauded the widespread growth, saying it’s another indication of Nevada’s improving K-12 education system.

“The improvement in both math and English Language Arts (ELA) once again demonstrates that Nevada is on course to become the fastest improving state in the nation,” Canavero said in a statement. “I believe that the funding priorities set forth by Governor Brian Sandoval and our legislature during the past two sessions are beginning to bear fruit.”

Progress and room for improvement

The double-digit increase for eighth grade’s math proficiency rate is the most striking improvement, but officials said it’s the result of a policy change.

In previous years, eighth-graders enrolled in Algebra I — an advanced math course — were exempt from taking the SBAC test because they took a separate end-of-course exam for the high school-level class, said Greg Bortolin, a spokesman for the Nevada Department of Education. That changed for the 2017-2018 school year. Students no longer take end-of-course exams, so they participated in the SBAC test this spring.

While the high-achieving students likely boosted that proficiency rate, education officials acknowledged room for improvement.

“That number is still not where we want it,” Bortolin said. “We still want to see that number rise dramatically.”

The same could be said for all the grade-level test results. Despite increases, some of which were more slight than others, the proficiency rates fall short of goals set in the state plan to align with the federal Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).

The state’s plan lists long-term proficiency goals of 61 percent for ELA and 41 percent for math by 2022. The proficiency targets for the 2017-2018 school year were 54 percent for ELA and 37 percent for math.

But the highest ELA proficiency rate this year was 50.33 percent for fifth grade. As for math, only third and fourth grade exceeded the 37 percent target proficiency rate this year.

“Setting lofty goals is critical,” Clark County Superintendent Jesus Jara said. “I think it helps us drive the conversation.”

Even so, he’s not satisfied with the proficiency rates, most of which are below 50 percent for each grade level. He said that’s a “concern” and a reason why he’ll be lobbying the Legislature for better education funding.

“If we lower the class size, I think our kids will be able to perform at higher levels,” he said.

A spokesman for the Smarter Balanced Assessment Coalition said only three other states have released their 2018 results. Of those states, only Delaware provided a grade-level breakdown similar to what Nevada released.

A sampling of the data shows that Delaware students generally outperformed Nevada students on the standardized test. For instance, 52 percent of Delaware third-graders achieved proficiency on the ELA assessment, compared with roughly 46 percent of Nevada third-grade students. And Delaware’s eighth-grade proficiency rate on the math test was about 10 percent higher than Nevada’s.

More information about students’ performance on the Smarter Balanced assessments will be released Sept. 14. That’s the same day the state will issue new star ratings, based on the Nevada School Performance Framework standards, for all elementary, middle and high schools.

The SBAC results play into the star ratings. They’re incorporated into the performance framework via the academic achievement, student growth and opportunity gap categories.

Here’s a closer look at how each grade level fared on the tests, according to the preliminary data:

English Language Arts

Grade 3 increased 1.32 percent to 46.12 percent proficiency

Grade 4 increased 2.23 percent to 48.45 percent proficiency

Grade 5 increased .09 percent to 50.33 percent proficiency

Grade 6 increased 1.53 percent to 44.39 percent proficiency

Grade 7 decreased .12 percent to 46.95 percent proficiency

Grade 8 increased .93 percent to 47.41 percent proficiency

Math

Grade 3 increased .68 percent to 48.25 percent proficiency

Grade 4 increased .85 percent to 41.56 percent proficiency

Grade 5 increased 2.01 percent to 35.86 percent proficiency

Grade 6 increased 1.6 percent to 31.90 percent proficiency

Grade 7 increased 2.34 percent to 31.42 percent proficiency

Grade 8 increased 12.07 percent to 29.57 percent proficiency

This story was updated at 6:05 p.m. to include a chart and more analysis of the test results.