(Posted on December 18, 2008)

Horry County Schools’ students made improvements in the mean scores on end-of-course test scores in English, algebra, and physical science, outpacing the state in each of the subject areas tested last year. At the state level, student scores improved in English and physical science, but decreased slightly in algebra.

High school students have long taken traditional final exams in many courses.  But South Carolina’s introduction of the statewide End-of-Course Examination Program, mandated by the Education Accountability Act of 1998, marked the first time that a standards-based, uniform test was administered to all students in the same courses.  Algebra 1 testing began in the 2003-2004 school year, while English 1 and physical science were added a year later.  Results count for 20 percent of each student’s final course grade. 

For HCS students, the 2007-2008 grade distribution for English I was 13.4 percent A, 17.5 percent B, 25.7 percent C, 17.0 percent D and 26.4. Grade distribution for algebra was 18.1 percent A, 18.5 percent B, 23.1 percent C, 23.3 percent D and 17.1 percent F. Grade distribution for physical science was 12.3 percent A, 16.1 percent B, 17.9 percent C, 17.5 percent D and 36.2 percent F.

Statewide, the grade distribution for English I was 11.9 percent A, 15.6 percent B, 23.6 percent C, 17.3 percent D and 31.6 percent F.  Grade distribution for algebra was 14.5 percent A, 16.8 percent B, 22.9 percent C, 24.1 percent D and 21.7 percent F.  Grade distribution for physical science was 9.3 percent A, 10.6 percent B, 16.9 percent C, 18.2 percent D and 45 percent F.

Under South Carolina’s uniform grading scale, an A is 93-100; a B is 85-92; a C is 77-84; and a D is 70-76. Anything 69 or below is an F.

Highlights of 2008 results included:

● English I - English I test results improved significantly at the district and state levels in 2007-2008. For HCS, the mean scale score rose from 76.0 to 77.9. At the state level, the mean score increased from 74.4 to 76.3.  The percentage of students scoring either an A or B improved from 26.8 to 30.9 for HCS and from 21.3 to 27.5 at the state level. The percentage of HCS students failing the exam dropped from 24.0 to 22.1. At the state level, the percentage of student failing the exam dropped from 35.2 to 31.6.

● Algebra I – Thirty-seven percent of HCS students tested in algebra scored an A or a B in 2007-2008, compared to 31 percent at the state level. The district’s mean score was 80.6, up two-tenths of a point from the year before. At the state level, the mean scale score was 79.1, a half of a point lower than the year before.

Grade distribution was mixed compared to the previous year.  More HCS students scored either an A or B, but more students also made an F. 

● Physical science - Although physical science had the lowest passing score among the three EOCEP tests, the mean scale score for HCS students improved by 0.9 of a point, from 74.3 to 75.2. More students recorded either an A or B, while the percentage of F’s dropped by 0.7 points. At the state level, the mean improved 1.4 points, going from 70.7 to 72.1.  More students recorded either an A or B, while the percentage of F’s dropped by 5.3 points.

A fourth end-of-course exam - U.S. History and the Constitution - was administered for the first time during the 2006-2007 school year.  Those scores will count as 20 percent of students’ final grades and become part of the state’s school accountability system during the 2008-09 school year.