Exit exam scores here slightly below the state average

More than 75 percent of county high school students passed the state's high school exit exam last spring, a figure that fell just short of the state average.

High school students must pass the English and math sections of the High School Assessment Program (HSAP). About half of the states require high school students pass an exit exam in order to earn a diploma.

The exit exam is given to students during their second year in high school. Students who do not pass the test on their first attempt have additional chances to pass the test before graduation.

Statewide, more than 77 percent of the state's tenth graders passed the exit exam. This was nearly a 2.4 percent improvement over 2006 and a 5.3 percent point improvement over 2005.

Blacksburg High mirrored the state's improvement on the exam. Blacksburg tenth graders who passed the exit exam on their first attempt jumped from 72.4 percent in 2006 to 76.6 percent in 2007.

"We are pleased with our improvement," said Blacksburg High Principal Jim Touchberry. "That's our goal every year. We are still not complacent. We know we need to make improvements every year. We will never be satisfied until we are scoring above the state average."

Gaffney High saw little change in its exit exam scores from last year. The number of students who passed the exit exam dipped slightly from 75.2 percent in 2006 to 74.8 percent in 2007. Gaffney High had a first attempt pass rate of 67.8 percent in 2005.

This was a significant improvement from 1997 when only half of the district's high school students could pass the exit exam on their first attempt.

Blacksburg High has joined Gaffney High this year in using NovaNet, an online course system that allows students who have fallen behind their classmates academically to earn English and math credits needed to graduate.

Both Blacksburg and Gaffney high schools have benefited from an academy program that the school district started five years ago. Students in those grades take additional English and math classes where they can focus on improving their skills in those subject areas.

"We target our academic assistance towards ninth grade students who had difficulty with PACT testing," Touchberry said. "We hope by identifying these students early that we can help them be successful in high school."

Blacksburg High had an 80 percent graduation rate last year. Gaffney High graduated 62.5 percent of its students. These graduation figures are based on the number of students who finish high school in four years.

State Superintendent Jim Rex said improving the state's on-time high school graduation rate will be a key challenge for South Carolina's public schools.

"If you buy into the idea that high school graduation is a valid indicator of a school system's overall health - and I do - then this is an issue that has rightfully moved to center stage," Rex said.