That's according to a Sangamon Sun analysis of 2022 test score data compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).
ISBE reports that last year, 74.1 percent of Sangamon County's 1,765 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.
Lanphier High School (91.8 percent), Tri-City High School (86.6 percent), and Pawnee Junior/Senior High School (84.8 percent) had the highest failure rates in Sangamon County. Springfield High School (65.4 percent) and Glenwood High School (62.2 percent) had the lowest.
No Sangamon County high schools had a passing rate of more than 50 percent of students.
County-wide, Math test failure rates rose from 68.3 percent in 2019 to 74.1 percent in 2022.
The failure rate increased at 10 Sangamon County high schools in 2022, with the most significant increase happening at Pleasant Plains High School (78.6 percent).
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).
Pawnee Junior/Senior High School and Springfield Southeast High School were the only Sangamon County high schools to see Math scores improve between 2019 and 2022.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lanphier High School | 183 | 82.8% | 90.5% | 91.8% |
| Tri-City High School | 45 | 85.8% | 83.4% | 86.6% |
| Pawnee Junior/Senior High School | 33 | 90% | 87.8% | 84.8% |
| Springfield Southeast High School | 225 | 85.9% | 81.1% | 84.5% |
| Auburn High School | 91 | 72.5% | 88.2% | 82.4% |
| Riverton High School | 75 | 76.4% | 84.7% | 78.6% |
| Pleasant Plains High School | 84 | 58.9% | 63.8% | 78.6% |
| New Berlin High School | 64 | 65.7% | 69.3% | 71.9% |
| Rochester High School | 174 | 62.4% | 71% | 71.3% |
| Williamsville High School | 135 | 60.2% | 77.5% | 70.3% |
| Springfield High School | 304 | 64.1% | 54.8% | 65.4% |
| Glenwood High School | 352 | 50.4% | 66.5% | 62.2% |
Alerts Sign-up