Catherine Truitt North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction | https://x.com/ctruittnc?lang=en
Catherine Truitt North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction | https://x.com/ctruittnc?lang=en
Science scores among the district's schools rose to 37.8% compared to the previous school year, when 25.9% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.
Polk County Early College students stood out from schools in Polk County Schools in science, with almost 58.8% of the 11th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (10). Meanwhile, students from Polk County High School struggled the most on the science portion, and only 34.7% were considered ready for college.
For comparison, North Carolina saw 26% of its students meeting or exceeding the ACT benchmarks for science during the 2022-23 school year.
Besides science, 52.6% of Polk County Schools 11th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In reading, 41.5% of students were ready for college, and math scores revealed 28.1% of juniors also met the standard. Overall, Polk County Schools had an average college readiness of 20.7% across all ACT areas.
North Carolina's education system is still grappling with the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the 2022-23 ACT results, college readiness among North Carolina students falls short of pre-pandemic levels, with only 17.1% meeting benchmarks.
Additionally, the state's performance is lagging behind the national average, which currently stands at 21%.
| School | Met or Exceeded Benchmarks (2021-22) | Met or Exceeded Benchmarks (2022-23) |
|---|---|---|
| Polk County Early College | 44.4% | 58.8% |
| Polk County High School | 23.1% | 34.7% |
| Polk County Schools | 25.9% | 37.8% |
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