How many Morgan County students failed their English exams in 2023-24 school year?

Franklin Junior/Senior High School Principal Mr. Jeff Waggener (2023) | Franklin Junior/Senior High School

By West Central Reporter

Dec 22, 2024

Nearly 8 in 10 Morgan County public students aren't at grade level based on their performance in the English portion of the 2023-24 SAT.

That's according to an analysis from West Central Reporter of test scores compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).

ISBE reports that in the 2023-24 school year, 75.3% of Morgan County's 275 public high school students failed the ELA 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.

Waverly Junior and Senior High School had the highest failure rates in Morgan County in the 2023-24 school year (89.3%). Meanwhile, Franklin Junior/Senior High School had the lowest (66.6%).

Countywide, English test failure rates fell from 78.3% in the 2022-23 school year to 75.3% in the 2023-24 school year.

Data shows that the largest growth in failure rates occurred in Vermilion County, which increased by 20.8% to 89.7%; Clark County, which grew by 22% to 89.3%; Kendall County, which increased by 24.1% to 89.4%; Fayette County, which grew by 24.6% to 91.2%; and Shelby County, which increased by 27.3% to 92.3%.

Waverly Junior and Senior High School, Jacksonville High School, Triopia Junior-Senior High School, and Franklin Junior/Senior High School were the Morgan County high schools to see improvements between the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years.

Statewide, 67.7% of Illinois students failed the 2023-24 school year state English exam, down from 68.4% 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."

ELA Failure Rates in Morgan County High Schools in the 2023-24 School Year

High School	Student Count	Failure Rate in 2022-23 School Year	Failure Rate in 2023-24 School Year
Waverly Junior and Senior High School	28	90.5%	89.3%
Jacksonville High School	190	76.6%	75.3%
Triopia Junior-Senior High School	30	73.4%	70%
Franklin Junior/Senior High School	27	86.4%	66.6%