Horry County students show HSAP improvement

Horry County Schools Release
Published: November 7, 2008

CONWAY—Horry County Schools’ 10th graders improved performance on the High School Assessment Program (HSAP) examination and continue to outpace the state average on the test.

This year, 83.5 percent of Horry County Schools’ 10th graders passed the state’s high school exit exam on their first attempt in spring 2008, a 1.6 percent increase over 81.9 percent in 2007. Of those who did not pass on the first attempt, 10.7 percent missed in the area of English/language arts, compared to 9.2 percent in 2007. In the area of mathematics, 12.6 percent did not pass, an improvement over 15.7 percent last year.

Statewide, 80.8 percent of 10th graders passed the state’s high school exit exam on their first attempt in spring 2008, a 3.7 percent increase from 77.1 percent who passed on their first attempt in 2007. Of those who did not pass on the first attempt, 12.3 percent missed on English/language arts and 15.4 percent missed on mathematics.

Statewide, 80.8 percent of 10th graders passed the state’s high school exit exam on their first attempt in spring 2008, a 3.7 percent increase from 77.1 percent who passed on their first attempt in 2007. Of those who did not pass on the first attempt, 12.3 percent missed on English/language arts and 15.4 percent missed on mathematics.

Public high school students must pass the English language arts and mathematics sections of the new High School Assessment Program (HSAP) to qualify for a South Carolina diploma.  Among HCS students, 89.3 percent met standards for graduation in English/language arts, and 87.4 percent met standards in mathematics. Statewide, 87.7 percent of students met standards for graduation in English language arts and 84.6 percent met standards in mathematics.

The tests are initially administered in grade 10, and students who do not qualify have additional opportunities to retake the test in later grades.  About half of the states require high school students to pass an exit exam, in addition to earning the state-mandated number of course credits, to earn a diploma. South Carolina also requires students to earn 24 high school credits to graduate; some states require as few as 14.

In addition to functioning as South Carolina’s high school exit exam, HSAP scores also factor into high school Adequate Yearly Progress ratings under the federal No Child Left Behind law, which requires that all students score Proficient or higher by 2014.  According to South Carolina’s NCLB plan, Proficient is equivalent to a score of 3 on HSAP’s four-level scale. 

In the area of English language arts, 62.2 percent of HCS students scored 3 or higher, a 1.7 point decrease from 63.9 percent in 2007. In mathematics, 62.6 percent scored 3 or higher in mathematics, a 5.6 point increase from 57 percent 2007. Statewide, 59.3 percent of students scored 3 or higher in English language arts and 56 percent scored 3 or higher in mathematics.

HSAP is based on South Carolina’s academic standards, which became law in 1998 and which have been rated among the nation’s best.  Students get their first opportunity to pass HSAP during their second year of high school and have additional opportunities to retake the exit examination.