California’s K-12 students are emerging from the pandemic malaise, posting the most significant academic improvements in years, according to state test scores released today.

The Smarter Balanced standardized test results show increases for almost every student group and every grade, in every subject. Some of the biggest improvements were among students who have struggled the most.

“This is good news, we love to see this kind of improvement,” said Lupita Cortez Alcalá, executive director of Policy Analysis for California Education, a nonpartisan research organization. “It shows that the state’s investments in student mental health and other initiatives are working.”

In English language arts, 48.8% of students scored high enough to be considered proficient or advanced; 37% of students we

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