Analysis: 81.5% of Clark County public high school students failed 2023-24 school year state math exam

Tony Sanders State Superintendent of Education | Official Website

By East Central Reporter Reports

Jan 8, 2025

More than 8 in 10 Clark County public high school students aren't at grade level in math.

That's according to an analysis from East Central Reporter of test scores compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).

ISBE reports that in the 2023-24 school year, 81.5% of Clark County's 157 public high school students—approximately 127 students—failed the math portion of the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and have “minimal (or) incomplete understanding of the knowledge and skills relative to Illinois Learning Standards.”

Students can achieve four proficiencies in their subjects: partially met, approaching, meets, and exceeds standards. This report concludes students who partially met or approached the standards have failed in the subject.

Out of the three Clark County schools, Casey-Westfield Junior/Senior High School had the highest failure rate in the county (85.8%), and Marshall High School had the lowest (78.1%).

No high school in Clark County had a student passing rate exceeding 50%.

Countywide, math test failure rates rose from 81.4% in the 2022-23 school year to 81.5% in the 2023-24 school year.

Casey-Westfield Junior/Senior High School was the only Clark County high school to experience an increase in failure rates in the 2023-24 school year, reaching 85.8%.

Statewide, failure rates were highest in Bureau County, Christian County, Gallatin County, Schuyler County, and Hamilton County, where the percentage of students who failed the math exam were 82.4%, 91.6%, 93.4%, 93.6%, and 95.2%, respectively.

Martinsville Junior-Senior High School and Marshall High School were the only Clark County high schools that saw math scores improve between the 2022-23 school year and the 2023-24 school year.

Data shows that 73.7% of Illinois students failed the 2023-24 school year state math exam, up from 73% in the 2022-23 school year.

The SAT test is administered to Illinois high school sophomores “to fulfill the requirement that students take an assessment for college and career readiness in order to receive a regular high school diploma.”

Math Failure Rates in Clark County High Schools in 2023-24 School Year