Press Release

Cobb Students Perform Well On More Rigorous State Graduation Test

Cobb high school students performed well on the 2008 Georgia High School Graduation Test by posting higher scale scores and a higher passing percentage than either the state average or a comparison group of metro school districts. In fact, Cobb had a 90 percent or better passing rate in all subjects, including the new English Language Arts (ELA) and Science Graduation tests that were toughened for 2008 to meet new standards set by the State Board of Education.

Cobb’s scale scores were 242 for ELA and 240 for Science. District 11th graders outperformed their statewide peers in both areas by seven and five points, respectively. The percentage of Cobb students demonstrating proficiency or scoring in the advanced levels of performance on the two tests was also higher than the state and the metro area. Overall, 93% of Cobb students met or exceeded basic proficiency levels in ELA compared to 89% at the state level.  In Science, Cobb’s 90% passing rates exceeded the state rate by four points (Tables I A and I C).

The state is phasing in the new standards and this spring marks the first time that students were tested on the more rigorous standards in Science and ELA. The state established four levels of performance for the new tests—below proficiency, basic proficiency, advanced proficiency, and honors. Students must score at the basic proficiency level of 200 or higher in order to meet graduation requirements. More than half of Cobb students reached advanced or honors performance levels in both ELA (63%) and Science (57%).  These percentages indicate that students are meeting standards at higher rates than minimum requirements.  Scores for these two tests cannot be compared to those of previous years. 

Social Studies scores reflect student performance on common standards from both the Quality Core Curriculum and the new Georgia Performance Standards. Students were required to obtain a score of 500 or higher to demonstrate proficiency and meet graduation requirements. Cobb’s average score of 525 was four points higher than the state score of 521 and the percentage of students meeting or exceeding standards was 90% for the district. Slightly more than half (51%) of Cobb students reached advanced levels of proficiency on the test as compared to 41% of students statewide.

The Math test was based on the Quality Core Curriculum. Cobb students had an average score of 541, seven points higher than the state’s score of 534 and five points higher than the metro Atlanta average of 536.  The district had 96% of students meeting the standards and 63% of students exceeding the standards or scoring “Pass Plus.”  These percentages are higher than those of the state and the metro area. 

As part of the statewide testing program, 11th grade students are administered the GHSGT each spring. They are tested in four subject areas — English/Language Arts, Mathematics, Social Studies and Science — and each section must be passed to earn a Georgia high school diploma. Scores range from 400-600, with 500 as a passing score for Mathematics and Social Studies while English/Language Arts and Science scores range from 100 to 300 with 200 as a passing score.. Results for the system, state, metro area (RESA– Regional Educational Service Agencies) and individual schools are listed in Tables I A – I D.

 The English/Language Arts, Mathematics, Social studies and Science portions of the Georgia High School Graduation Test were administered to all 11th graders in March. Students have four opportunities to pass each section of the test before graduation.

View the release in Adobe PDF format with all data tables.

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