BONNERS FERRY — Despite slight decreases in scores, the Boundary County School District remained above the state average on the 2025 Idaho Standards Achievement Test.

The ISAT is Idaho’s state test on English Language Arts and math taken by all students in third through eighth grade and 11th grade. There is an additional science test, which is only taken by fifth, eighth and 11th graders.

Students are graded into four categories, below basic, basic, proficient and advanced. The rates of students testing at or above proficient, called the proficient plus rate, will be used in this story.

The science test saw the most significant gains for the district, with the percentage of the students scoring advanced jumping over 7% to 14.7%. That mark is by far the highest the district has scored on that test, dating back to 2022, and lifted the district’s proficiency plus rate to over 10% above the state average.

On the math portion of the ISAT, the results were more of a mixed bag. While the proficiency plus rate for the district fell by 1%, the rate of students scoring advanced rose by 2%. This year represents the district’s first decrease in the proficiency plus rate since 2021 but continues to remain in line with previous year’s results.

“Seeing Idaho students hold steady when it comes to this year’s assessment areas is both a source of confidence and a definite opportunity to look ahead, to ensure that our students are prepared for their futures now and beyond K-12 education,” Idaho Superintendent of Public Instruction Debbie Critchfield said in a press release.

Like the math test, the ELA test showed slight regression of about 2% in proficiency plus rate. That 2% decrease is attributed to fewer students scoring in advanced and more scoring basic, as the below basic and proficient rates remained near stagnant compared to last year.

“We’ve shown what’s possible with K-3 literacy,” Critchfield said. “There is no reason to believe that similar growth isn’t possible when we focus our resources on the tools needed to help students grow and achieve.”