That's according to a Illinois Valley Times analysis of 2022 test score data compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).
ISBE reports that last year, 69.7 percent of Putnam County's 66 public high school 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.
Putnam County High School, the only Putnam County high school, registered its highest failure (77.7 percent) rate during 2021, and the lowest (69.7 percent) in 2022.
County-wide, Math test failure rates fell from 72.9 percent in 2019 to 69.7 percent in 2022.
Failure rates rose the most in Coles County (82.7 percent), Mercer County (83.5 percent), Pope County (89.8 percent), Union County (91.3 percent), and Henderson County (92.2 percent).
Statewide, 70 percent of Illinois students failed the 2022 state Math exam, up from 64 percent in 2019.
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.”
| High School | # of Students | Failing % in 2019 | Failing % in 2021 | Failing % in 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Putnam County High School | 66 | 72.9% | 77.7% | 69.7% |
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