How many students failed their English exams in Cass County in 2022?

By West Central Reporter

Apr 14, 2023

Nearly 9 in 10 Cass County public high school students aren't at grade level in English.

That's according to a West Central Reporter analysis of 2022 test score data compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).

ISBE reports that last year, 87.8 percent of Cass County's 139 public high school students failed the English language arts 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.

Out of the three Cass County schools, Beardstown Junior/Senior High School (93.6 percent) had the highest failure rate in the county. A-C Central High School (70.4 percent) had the lowest.

No Cass County high schools had a passing rate of more than 50 percent of students.

County-wide, English test failure rates rose from 81.4 percent in 2019 to 87.8 percent in 2022.

The failure rate increased at one Cass County high school in 2022, with the most significant increase happening at Beardstown Junior/Senior High School (93.6 percent).

Failure rates rose the most at Cook County (100 percent), Marion County (100 percent), Peoria County (100 percent), Scott County (100 percent), Tazewell County (100 percent).

Every Cass County high school saw English scores improve between 2019 and 2022

Statewide, 69.1 percent of Illinois students failed the 2022 state English 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."

English Language Arts Failure Rates in Cass County High Schools in 2022