About 75% of students showed proficiency in reading across Virginia Standards of Learning tests this spring — a “modest” increase over the prior school year, according to state education officials.
Students showed increases in four of five tested subjects, despite changes to some minimum passing scores, but continue to lag behind pre-pandemic pass rates, according to the Virginia Department of Education.
The department released 2025-26 test results Tuesday ahead of a Virginia Board of Education meeting Wednesday, where officials are expected to present the results.
Overall, pass rates increased about 0.4 percentage points in both reading and math, with history and social science pass rates improving “most significantly” by 3.2 percentage points, according to a news release Tuesday.
Science pass rates overall declined, despite an 8.5 percentage point jump in chemistry pass rates. And despite the rise in some subjects’ scores, fewer school divisions met or exceeded the statewide pass rates in math and reading than a year ago.
Virginia students take SOL tests in grades three through eight in math, reading, science, social studies and writing. High school students take end-of-course SOLs in major subjects before they can graduate.
“Today’s statewide assessment results reflect progress in our classrooms, with combined math and reading scores of students in grades 3-8 rising slightly across the state,” Virginia Secretary of Education Jeffery Smith said in a statement.
“Behind the numbers are the dedicated efforts of thousands of students, educators, and families working hard every day to strengthen foundational literacy and numeracy skills. We also know that a lot of hard work is ahead of us, and I am convinced that together, we will continue to address learning gaps.”
About 41% of school divisions matched or exceeded the state pass rate of 74.5% for reading, compared to 45% the previous year.
Students in grades three and four made the most gains in reading, though third graders still have the lowest pass rate of all students tested in reading, with not quite 70% of the state’s third graders passing in reading. Seventy-two divisions maintained or improved their pass rates in reading, according to the Education Department, with more than a dozen of those in Southwest and Southside Virginia.
School division not shown on map: West Point (85.07).
About 45% of school divisions — 60 total — exceeded the statewide pass rate of 72.9% for math.
Math pass rates did not increase for all grade levels, with rates declining in grades seven and eight and for students who were tested in Algebra II. Gains were greatest for students in grades three and six.
Roanoke City Public Schools, where overall 54.5% of students passed their math SOLs, saw gains in seventh and eighth grades, “reflecting intentional efforts to strengthen accelerated learning opportunities and prepare students for success in higher-level coursework,” spokesperson Claire Mitzel said in a news release.
School divisions not shown on map: West Point (77.7) and Colonial Beach (76.2).
Which school divisions saw increases this year with implementation of the new cut scores varied widely.
Roanoke, for instance, saw slight declines in overall reading and math passing rates this year, but so did neighboring Roanoke County Public Schools, where students regularly outperform their peers across the state.
About 82.4% of Roanoke County students demonstrated proficiency in math during the 2025-26 school year, compared to 85.22% the prior year.
Despite the decline, new Roanoke County Public Schools Superintendent Jamie Soltis celebrated the division’s accomplishments Tuesday.
“Out of 132 divisions statewide, Roanoke County Public Schools ranked 11th in Virginia in reading and 8th in mathematics. We are particularly proud of our elementary performance,” he said in a statement.
“These results are a testament to the hard work of our students, teachers, administrators, support staff, and families,” Soltis said. “Our staff continually works to ensure that every student, in every school and every classroom, receives high-quality instruction that is grounded in Virginia’s academic standards while also intentionally integrating key skills our students will need beyond the classroom.”
Higher minimum passing scores implemented this year
The state Board of Education voted in September 2025 to raise the minimum passing scores for math and reading SOLs in what officials said was an effort to raise the bar for students and close the achievement gap between Virginia and other states.
SOLs are graded on a scale of 0 to 600. Previously, 400 was the threshold for proficiency, but the new cutoff scores range from 444 to 479 in reading and 430 to 453 in math, depending on the grade level.
Former Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s administration said at the time that adjusting the so-called cut scores would better match SOL performance to the National Assessment of Educational Progress, a nationwide assessment known as the “Nation’s Report Card.”
Youngkin himself often referenced an “honesty gap” between how students are scoring on state versus national tests.
Current Virginia education officials say students continue to make progress since the COVID-19 pandemic. Reading proficiency rates, for example, were 5 percentage points higher this year than during the 2020-2021 school year but continue to lag 2019 scores.
“This modest progress proves that our targeted investments in high-dosage tutoring, updated instructional materials, and educator support are delivering real results for students,” Superintendent of Public Instruction Jenna Conway said in a statement.
“We know there is still work ahead to ensure every child develops the knowledge and skills needed to be successful anywhere, but this growth demonstrates that our schools are moving in the right direction. We will continue using this information to inform targeted and meaningful support for our students’ long-term academic success.”
The Education Department noted declines in seventh and eighth grade math pass rates, as well as persisting achievement gaps among different student groups.
For example, 62.8% of Black students and 60.51% of Hispanic students showed proficiency in reading this year, compared to 83.4% of white students across the state.
Pass rates in math showed similar gaps, with 58.76% of Black students and 61.15% of Hispanic students showing proficiency in all grades in math compared to 81.9% of white students.
Still, education officials are celebrating gains in some school divisions.
Fifty-three school divisions saw increases in both math and reading pass rates, with Danville City Schools, Dickenson County Public Schools and Henry County Public Schools among nine divisions seeing at least 3-point gains in both reading and math.
Danville saw a 5-point increase in math pass rates, along with Accomack, Alexandria, Amelia, Bland, Clarke, Cumberland, Fredericksburg, Lexington and Middlesex school divisions.
Alleghany Highlands, Giles and Rockingham school divisions saw 5-point gains in reading.
This week’s test results release did not include other school quality measures such as absenteeism and graduation rates, which are typically part of the state Education Department’s School Quality Profile reports. That information is slated to be released “in the coming weeks,” according to Tuesday’s news release.
