Chambana Sun

More than 4 in 10 Piatt County public students aren't at grade level based on their performance in the English portion of the 2023 SAT.

That's according to a Chambana Sun analysis of test score data compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).

ISBE reports that last year, 43.5% of Piatt County's 1,478 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.

Bement Elementary School (62.1%), Deland-Weldon Middle School (55%) and Deland-Weldon Elementary School (53.5%) had the highest failure rates in Piatt County. Meanwhile, Bement Middle School (32.4%) and Cerro Gordo Junior/Senior High School (23.7%) had the lowest.

Of 11 Piatt County high schools, six, including Washington School, Cerro Gordo Elementary School, and White Heath Elementary School had passing rates of more than 50%.

Countywide, English test failure rates fell from 43.7% in 2021 to 43.5% in 2023.

The failure rate rose in five Piatt County high schools in 2023, with the most significant increase happening at Bement Elementary School (62.1%).

Data shows that the highest failure rates growths were seen in Christian County (72.5%), Hancock County (73.8%), Cook County (74.1%), White County (74.1%), and Morgan County (76.7%).

Deland-Weldon Middle School was the only Piatt County high school to see improvements between 2021 and 2023.

Statewide, 39.9% of Illinois students failed the 2023 state English exam, down from 64% 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 2021	Failing % in 2022	Failing % in 2023
Bement Elementary School	58	59.7%	52.5%	62.1%
Deland-Weldon Middle School	20	68.7%	68.2%	55%
Deland-Weldon Elementary School	43	48.6%	53.5%	53.5%
Blue Ridge Intermediate and Junior High School	204	54.5%	56.4%	52.4%
Atwood-Hammond Grade School	133	51.4%	61.7%	51.1%
Washington School	119	43.5%	41%	45.4%
Cerro Gordo Elementary School	100	42%	41.1%	44%
White Heath Elementary School	264	37.9%	37.9%	43.1%
Monticello Middle School	365	34.6%	40.4%	38.1%
Bement Middle School	71	39.2%	31.8%	32.4%
Cerro Gordo Junior/Senior High School	101	27.3%	33.9%	23.7%