Williamsfield High School Principal Zack Binder (2023) | Williamsfield High School
Williamsfield High School Principal Zack Binder (2023) | Williamsfield High School
That's according to an analysis from Galesburg Reporter of test scores compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).
ISBE reports that in the 2023-24 school year, 87.6% of Knox County's 490 public high school students—approximately 429 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.
Williamsfield High School (100%) and Abingdon-Avon High School had the highest failure rate in Knox County (96.9%), and Galesburg High School (84.9%) and Knoxville Senior High School (82.5%) had the lowest.
No high school in Knox County had a student passing rate exceeding 50%.
Countywide, math test failure rates rose from 84.8% in the 2022-23 school year to 87.6% in the 2023-24 school year.
Failure rates increased at three Knox County high schools in the 2023-24 school year, with the most significant increase happening at Williamsfield High School, where the rate jumped from 76.2% to 100%.
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.
No Knox County high schools 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.”
| High School | Student Count | Failure Rate in 2022-23 | Failure Rate in 2023-24 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Williamsfield High School | 24 | 76.2% | 100% |
| Abingdon-Avon High School | 65 | 94.2% | 96.9% |
| ROWVA Junior/Senior High School | 49 | 74.2% | 91.9% |
| Galesburg High School | 272 | 85.2% | 84.9% |
| Knoxville Senior High School | 80 | 82.1% | 82.5% |
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