SE Illinois News

Nearly 6 in 10 Wabash 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 SE Illinois News analysis of test score data compiled by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE).

ISBE reports that last year, 58.4% of Wabash County's 675 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.

Of three Wabash County schools, Mt. Carmel Junior High School (62.5%) had the highest failure rate in the county. Meanwhile, Allendale Elementary School (48.1%) had the lowest.

Countywide, English test failure rates rose from 49.8% in 2021 to 58.4% in 2023.

The failure rate increased at two Wabash County high schools in 2023, with the most significant increase happening at Mt. Carmel Junior High School (62.5%).

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%).

No high schools in the county saw 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
Mt. Carmel Junior High School	203	40.3%	51.9%	62.5%
Mt. Carmel Grade School	393	55.5%	52.4%	58.3%
Allendale Elementary School	79	46.6%	52.9%	48.1%