Fort Worth ISD students show reading, math growth as state takeover moves forward
Students in the Fort Worth Independent School District are growing in reading and math performance through the lens of national standards, according to the latest student performance data shared by Superintendent Karen Molinar.
Molinar presented mid-year MAP data on Tuesday night at the school board meeting, showing how students in kindergarten through eighth grade are progressing compared to their national peers. Fort Worth ISD students take the MAP test at the beginning, middle and end of the school year to track academic progress. It’s separate from the annual, end-of-year State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness exam, or STAAR, which evaluates state standards.
The grade-level norms, or the typical performance of students in a defined population, of the MAP exam were updated in 2025 to reflect test data collected after the COVID-19 era, Molinar noted.
“We’re really proud of how we’re doing,” Molinar said. “There are great things going on on these campuses every single day, and we see that. We saw that in our data, but we’re seeing it every day. I just have to thank our teachers and our leaders for staying focused on our students every day (and) on instruction, and then implementing our new curriculum and instructional framework.”
The percentage of kindergartners through eighth graders, at every grade level, meeting grade level norms in reading increased compared to last year, ranging from 4 to 27 percentage points. Pacific Islander students and American Indian students were the only two student groups out of 11 total who saw a decline in this metric in the same period. They saw a respective decrease of 9 and 14 percentage points each.
Across all grade levels, students also improved their projected growth — the expected improvement in a student’s academic performance toward grade-level standards — from the beginning of the school year to the middle of the school year.
There were 57% of students in kindergarten through third grade that met or exceeded grade-level norms in reading on the middle-of-year MAP test this year, an increase of 13 percentage points compared to the middle-of-year test taken a year ago.
Kindergartners through fifth graders who took the recent MAP reading test in Spanish also improved in projected growth and in meeting grade-level norms.
Molinar reiterated the district’s goals over the next five years for the percentage of third-graders meeting grade level in reading on STAAR:
- 2026: 41%
- 2027: 44%
- 2028: 47%
- 2029: 50%
- 2030: 53%
In spring 2025, 36% of Fort Worth ISD third-graders, who took the STAAR exam in both English and Spanish, were meeting grade level in this subject.
In math, gains in meeting grade-level norms and projected growth were also seen across all grade levels from kindergarten through eighth grade. Pacific Islander students were identified again as a student group that saw a decrease in meeting grade level norms in this subject, specifically at a loss of 7 percentage points.
There were 57% of students in kindergarten through third grade that met or exceeded grade-level norms on the middle-of-year MAP test in math this year — the same percentage for reading across the same grade levels. This accounted for a 15-percentage-point increase compared to the middle-of-year test taken a year ago.
In third-grade math, the district’s goals for the percentage of students meeting grade level on STAAR are:
- 2026: 37%
- 2027: 39%
- 2028: 43%
- 2029: 46%
- 2030: 50%
In spring 2025, 33% of Fort Worth ISD third-graders, who took the STAAR exam in both English and Spanish, were meeting grade level in math.
Molinar highlighted the closing of performance gaps in MAP data between white students and African American students for both reading and math. She also pointed out improvements for special education students and students who are experiencing chronic absenteeism.
“I am very excited by the progress that’s being made, that is being measured and being quantified not only in smiles but also in numbers,” said school board Trustee Anne Darr. “The curriculum that you have put in place with this board’s support appears to be working.”
Parents can see how their child performed on the latest MAP test through the Parent Portal at https://fwisd.focusschoolsoftware.com/focus/ and through the Fort Worth ISD mobile app.
Molinar’s update on student performance data comes less than a week after the district lost its final attempt at appealing a state takeover from the Texas Education Agency. A panel of three administrative law judges granted TEA’s request to dismiss Fort Worth ISD’s appeal case, paving the way for the takeover to move forward. A board of managers will be appointed to replace the current elected school board, and a national superintendent search that includes Molinar is underway.
Fort Worth ISD officials were notified of a potential state takeover last May after the Leadership Academy at Forest Oak Sixth Grade received five failed ratings in a row from the state. This triggered a state law requiring intervention by way of the school’s closure or replacement of the school board. Fort Worth ISD had already closed the campus when it received notification of a possible takeover.
A formal order striking down Fort Worth ISD’s appeal will be issued within a month.
