Unity High School Principal Mr. Joshua Arnsman (2023) | Unity High School
Unity High School Principal Mr. Joshua Arnsman (2023) | Unity High School
That's according to an analysis from Quincy Reporter of test scores compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).
ISBE reports that in the 2023-24 school year, 78.3% of Adams County's 598 public high school students—approximately 468 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.
Quincy Senior High School (83%) and Seymour High School had the highest failure rate in Adams County (82.9%), and Liberty High School (62.8%) and Central High School (46.5%) had the lowest.
Out of the five high schools in Adams County, only Central High School had a passing rate above 50%.
Countywide, math test failure rates rose from 77.7% in the 2022-23 school year to 78.3% in the 2023-24 school year.
Failure rates increased at two Adams County high schools in the 2023-24 school year, with the most significant increase happening at Liberty High School, where the rate jumped from 61.1% to 62.8%.
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.
Central High School and Unity High School were the only Adams 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.”
| High School | Student Count | Failure Rate in 2022-23 | Failure Rate in 2023-24 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quincy Senior High School | 428 | 81.7% | 83% |
| Seymour High School | 41 | 86.2% | 82.9% |
| Unity High School | 43 | 78% | 74.5% |
| Liberty High School | 43 | 61.1% | 62.8% |
| Central High School | 43 | 61.6% | 46.5% |
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