Illinois Valley Times

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

That's according to a Illinois Valley Times analysis of 2023 test score data compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).

ISBE reports that last year, 80.7% of Putnam County's 57 public high school students — approximately 45 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 (82.1%) rate during 2022, and the lowest (75%) in 2021.

Countywide, math test failure rates rose from 75% in 2021 to 80.7% in 2023.

Putnam County High School was the only Putnam County high school to experience an increase in failure rates in 2023, reaching 80.7%.

Statewide, failure rates increased the most in Wayne County, Greene County, Sangamon County, Pike County, and Pulaski County, where the percentage of students who failed the math exam rose to 74.1%, 86.4%, 95.6%, 96.7%, and 100%, respectively.

Statewide, 75.6% of Illinois students failed the 2023 state math exam, up from 64% in 2021.

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 2021	Failing % in 2022	Failing % in 2023
Putnam County High School	57	75%	82.1%	80.7%