Great News! Beaufort County Students are Making Positive Strides in State ELA, Math tests

We’ve got some impressive updates from Beaufort County. The latest round of statewide test scores reveal a solid uptick in the achievements of Beaufort County School District (BCSD) students. While the school authorities agree there’s some way to go before they pat themselves on the back, the growth trajectory definitely deserves applause.

Zooming in on the Figures

In 2024, a promising 53.4% of BCSD students from grades 3 to 8 met or exceeded standards in ELA (English Language Arts). This has been identified as the district’s best score in history. The figure stands slightly higher than 53% from the previous year and a sizeable jump from 48.1% in 2022.

In the math test, though, the scores were a bit lower with only 43% of the students meeting or exceeding the standards. Yes, it’s a 3% increase from 2023, but it still lurks below the 47.2% achieved in pre-pandemic 2019.

A Nationwide Challenge

BCSD School Superintendent Dr. Frank Rodriguez points out that school districts across the country are still grappling with the academic impact of the pandemic, more so in math. Echoing the Secretary of Education, Rodriguez acknowledged that the pandemic’s blow to education was equivalent to a decade’s worth of setbacks, warranting a multi-year recovery plan.

Looking at the Bright Spots

In spite of the challenges, BCSD’s report paints an encouraging picture. With every grade level demonstrating an improvement in math and exceeding state parameters in both Math SC Ready and ELA SC Ready, there’s some reason to cheer.

The district is also faring well with its Career Readiness Math, Data, Reading, and Soft Skills assessments—all surpassing the State. BCSD has set big goals for its students, hoping to raise proficiency rates to 75% in the next five years in both ELA and Math.

The Path Forward

Even with the upward trend, there’s room for growth. Rodriguez likens the growth to compounding interest. The more students we have meeting and exceeding levels, the faster and broader the impact.

The BCSD serves over 21,000 students and is home to more than double the population of multilingual learners compared to the state average. Several schools within the district have shown significant progress towards meeting or even exceeding the district and state’s rigorous 75% proficiency goals in both ELA and Math.

While the journey to full recovery from the pandemic’s educational impact will be long, it’s heartening to see Beaufort County students proving their resilience and strength.