Middle School Students Gained Over Half a Year of Extra Learning When Schools Combined Personalized Digital Instruction with Standards-Aligned Practice
A quasi-experimental study conducted by Edmentum of nearly 16,000 Florida students found that combining personalized instruction with standards-aligned practice produced significantly stronger math and reading gains than either approach alone.
Bloomington, Minn., June 18, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- In a new third-party validated study conducted by Edmentum, a leading provider of K-12 digital curriculum, assessments, and learning interventions, middle schoolers who received access to two connected digital learning programs posted measurably stronger reading and math scores on the state assessment than peers who used only one of the programs or neither.
The study examined nearly 9,000 ELA students and 6,700 math students across grades 6-8 in a large Florida district during the 2024-25 school year. Researchers found that students using both Exact Path Growth, a personalized instructional program that places students on individualized learning paths based on diagnostic data, and Exact Path Proficiency, a standards-aligned practice tool oriented toward state test readiness, demonstrated stronger outcomes than students using neither as well as students using Exact Path Growth alone.
Compared to students using neither, students using both programs:
- Gained the equivalent of 26 added weeks of learning in ELA and 9 added weeks in math
- Increased the impact of Exact Path Growth by 22% in math and 280% (2.8x) in ELA
- Produced positive impacts that were 2-3 times stronger than the negative effects associated with receiving free/reduced lunch
The timing of these findings is especially notable with last week’s release of NAEP reading and math scores for students at age 13, which showed that scores still lag behind the 2012 and 2020 results, with no change since the previous NAEP results were published in 2023. This new efficacy study from Edmentum, addressing both math and literacy for students in the same age cohort, demonstrate that Exact Path is a powerful lever to help middle school students catch up and gain valuable ground in these subjects.
"The findings reinforce that intervention doesn't have to be in competition with grade-level instruction. We know we should do both, and last week’s NAEP results provide a reminder that middle school students require meaningful, research-backed support to ensure they don’t continue through high school without the chance to attain proficiency,” said Dr. Michelle Barrett, SVP of Research, Policy & Impact at Edmentum. “In our study, students made the greatest gains when personalized skill-building was paired with consistent exposure to grade-level standards, and this is a model that illustrates significant promise for students nationwide. These findings provide valuable information to help districts deliver the greatest impact for the students they serve."
The findings add to a growing body of research suggesting that academic interventions work best when students are exposed to both targeted skill-building and grade-level content. A persistent challenge in post-pandemic recovery has been that remediation efforts can pull students away from the grade-level instruction they need to stay on track — the study's results suggest this approach may offer a way to address both needs simultaneously.
Another recent study demonstrated ESSA Tier 1 evidence—the highest level of third-party validation, which proves causal impact—that upper elementary ELA students receiving Edmentum’s high-impact virtual tutoring improved their ranking on the state assessment by an average of 20 percentile points. These students were 2.5 times more likely than their peers to meet test expectations, demonstrating grade-level performance. These findings are relevant to the release of NAEP results for students at age 9, which found that reading scores are still below the 2012 and 2020 NAEP results, although they did improve by three points over 2022.
When viewed together, these efficacy results provide meaningful evidence that the products across Edmentum’s Accelerating Student Achievement solution support elementary and secondary success in reading and math, critical subjects in which many students are not currently meeting expectations. Read both full studies on Edmentum’s efficacy research page.
About Edmentum
Edmentum believes that every student deserves the opportunity to thrive everywhere learning occurs—whether they seek to catch up, stay on track, or chart their own path. When you pair Edmentum's comprehensive, research-backed learning acceleration solutions with empowered and supported educators, you can change the direction of students' lives. We partner with K–12 educators in all 50 states and 100+ countries worldwide to design, implement, and sustain the programs that deliver on this shared promise of learning acceleration for every student. www.edmentum.com.
Ross Romano Edmentum communications@edmentum.com
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