Among third graders in the Jacksonville-North Pulaski School District who did not pass a year-end literacy test, almost three-quarters will be promoted to fourth grade anyway due to exemptions.<\/p>\n
Of the 334 third graders in the Jacksonville-North Pulaski district who took the end-of-year Arkansas Teaching, Learning & Assessment System test in the 2025-26 school year, 131 students, or more than 39%, scored a Level 1 on the reading portion on their first try, according to district spokeswoman Cheesa Williams. Level 1 is the lowest score on the ATLAS test.<\/p>\n
Out of those 131 students who scored a Level 1, just 21 will be held back in the 2026-27 school year, Williams said.<\/p>\n
The 21 third graders who will be held back represent roughly 6% of the third graders in the Jacksonville-North Pulaski district in 2025-26. Williams said that in the 2024-25 school year, three third graders were held back for academic reasons.<\/p>\n
Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders’ LEARNS Act of 2023 requires third graders in public schools to score a Level 2 or higher on the ATLAS test in order to be promoted to fourth grade, beginning in 2025-26.<\/p>\n
Districts were allowed to hold retests from May 18 to June 30, giving students a chance to improve their scores. Sixty-four Jacksonville-North Pulaski third graders retested, according to Williams, and 14 improved to a Level 2 or higher.<\/p>\n
Arkansas school districts have the power to grant “good-cause exemptions” to third-grade students who fail to pass the test. Exemptions can be granted to students who were previously retained, students with certain disabilities and some English language learners.<\/p>\n
Districts can also grant exemptions for students who previously performed consistently at grade level and students with “necessary, justifiable” exemptions that include experiencing a traumatic event impacting exam performance.<\/p>\n
In total, 96 Jacksonville-North Pulaski third graders received a good-cause exemption, representing 73% of those who scored Level 1 on their first try.<\/p>\n
Numbers from other Arkansas school districts reflect a similar trend, with large numbers of third graders being promoted despite failing to read at grade level on the ATLAS test.<\/p>\n
In the Little Rock School District, roughly 400 of the district’s more than 1,400 third graders scored a Level 1 on their first try, of which roughly 380<\/a> received good-cause exemptions. In the Springdale School District, 403 of the district’s more than 1,500 third graders scored a Level 1, of which 390 received exemptions<\/a>.<\/p>\n In the North Little Rock School District, roughly 110 of the 202 students who scored a Level 1 on their first try received exemptions, spokesman Dustin Barnes said previously. The district had roughly 570 third graders in 2025-26, according to Arkansas Department of Education enrollment data.<\/p>\n In the Pulaski County Special School District, Sonya Whitfield, deputy superintendent of learning services, said at a June board meeting that “a little over half” of the roughly 200 third graders who scored a Level 1 qualified for an exemption.<\/p>\n Research on retaining students in third grade has yielded mixed conclusions. Some studies have found that retention can result in short-term academic improvements.<\/p>\n