This story is excerpted from the MT Lowdown, a weekly newsletter digest that showcases a more personal side of Montana Free Press’ reporting.

Percentage of Montana high school students who tested as “novice” in math on standardized tests during the 2021-22 school year, according to data released by the Office of Public Instruction last week. The figure continues a steady decline in math proficiency over the last six years, with the share of high school students testing as “proficient” or higher slipping from 36.2% in 2015-16 to 25.3% last spring. English Language Arts scores have followed a similar trend, with 42.1% of students assessed as proficient or higher in 2021-22 compared to 52.5% in 2015-16.
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