29 percent of schools don't make "adequate yearly progress"

Middle and elementary schools also tumbled, though not as dramatically. The failure rate was 15.5 percent for elementary schools, compared to 10 percent last year, and 33 percent for the middle schools, up from 25 percent.

Combined, 305 elementary, middle and high schools made the “Needs Improvement” list for failing to make AYP for two or more consecutive years. That number was actually down from last year, largely because 35 schools came off the state list.

The bar for making AYP keeps rising. This year, high schools were required to have 80 percent graduation rates, up from last year's 75 percent rate and better than the current state average of 79.9 percent. For grades 3 through 8, schools had to maintain a 67.6 percent passing rate on the math CRCT, compared to 59.5 percent last year.

"It's getting hard to make AYP and that's really the bottom line," said Stephen D. Dollinger, president of the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education.

Brad Bryant, interim state school superintendent, said the results were not a huge surprise, given the objective of NCLB of continuous student improvement. The initiative's goal is for all students to be proficient in math and reading by 2014.

“We’re starting to see the steeper climb to 100 percent,” Bryant said. “We didn’t want to believe the incline was going to be as steep as it was going to be.”

The bright spots in the data, he said, are the continued rise in graduation rates and the efforts that schools are making to work their way off the needs improvement list.

"[Math tests are] still going to be an Achilles’ heel for us,” Bryant said, “not so much based on the quality of the individuals working in the schools, but our approach to meeting the needs of our students in more relevant ways.”

While Gov. Sonny Perdue was out of town and unavailable, Chris Schrimpf, a Perdue spokesman, released a statement, saying: "While there's always work to be done and AYP helps show where the most work is needed, the state has continued to make great strides in improving its graduation rate. We are on the cusp of surpassing our 80 percent graduation rate goal, something no one thought was possible a few years ago."

Schools are required under No Child Left Behind to reach certain benchmarks on English, reading and math tests every year. Those schools that succeed are said to have made AYP and those failing for consecutive years face increasingly severe sanctions. Some schools allow students to transfer to better-performing schools while others face complete staff changes or even possible takeover by the state.

The new data showed that 27 school systems across the state, including Fayette County and Marietta City Schools, can boast that all of their schools made AYP. Melinda Berry-Dreisbach, spokeswoman for Fayette schools, said most of the other 26 perfect AYP systems have far fewer schools than her county's 28.

In the city of Atlanta, the picture wasn't immediately clear because the state is withholding AYP results for 58 public schools, pending the results of an investigation of possible cheating on last year's state standardized tests. That report is due Aug. 2, a week before the new school year starts.

Of the remaining 44 Atlanta schools for which the state reported results, 64 percent made AYP. This time last year with all schools counted, the city had a 77 percent AYP passing rate.

Atlanta school officials reserved comment, pending the release of information on the 58 schools.

"Once that happens, we will be in a much better position to assess the district’s performance in this area," spokesman Keith Bromery said.

Gwinnett, Georgia's largest school system, saw nearly 90 percent of its 118 schools make AYP. Among them were J.E Richards Middle School in Lawrenceville and Meadowcreek High School in Norcross, which moved off the needs improvement list by making AYP for a second consecutive year.

Principals from both schools were excited Monday to have good news to share with their communities.

"I'm thrilled for the community, the staff and students," said Meadowcreek's Bob Jackson. "They all worked hard to make it happen. We're headed in the right direction, and we're doing the right thing."

"We focused on giving every child the opportunity to learn at the highest level," said Richards Middle School Principal Reginald Kirkland.

Susan Walker, the Georgia Partnership's policy and research director, said the new data raises the question: Is AYP really the clearest indicator of school performance?

“Grad rates are up, yet only one third [of high schools] are making AYP,” Walker said. “That seems sort of incongruent.”

Dollinger said educators have to be concerned about more than just increased graduation rates. "We also want [students] to graduate with really solid skills," he said.

On Atlanta's northside, the school systems in Forsyth and Cherokee counties had few failing schools and high numbers of schools to make the "Distinguished" category.

Twenty-seven of Forsyth's 34 schools fell into the distinguished list and only Forsyth Central High School did not meet AYP.

"We are delighted we have made AYP as a system for the second year in a row at a time when the bar continues to increase." said Superintendent Buster Evans.

In Cherokee County, 27 schools earned distinguished status while five – Canton Elementary, Oak Grove Elementary, Teasley Middle, Cherokee High and the Polaris Evening schools -- did not meet AYP standards. At the failing schools, principals and district staff will put together school improvement plans with measurable goals and objectives, said Frank Petruzielo, Cherokee's superintendent of schools.

In Cobb County, 15 schools did not make AYP, compared to just six last year. One school -- Powder Springs Elementary -- fell into needs improvement status and three others -- Griffin, Cooper and Smitha middle schools -- came off that list.

"This year, some of the AYP standards increased and became tougher to reach for these subgroups," school system spokesman Jay Dillon said. "That means we still have work left to do.”

Schools in Clayton County slightly outperformed the state average, with about 26 percent of the district’s campuses -- 16 out of 61 schools-- failing to meet testing goals. Four schools --Swint Elementary and Kendrick, Mundy’s Mill and Sequoyah middle schools -- were able to move off the needs improvement list, according to the state's data.

In DeKalb County, 74 of the system's 133 schools made AYP, down from 93 last year. Nine schools were added to the needs improvement list and none were able to come off the list, said Dr. Alice Thompson, chief of staff.

“We will have professional learning for all math teachers," Thompson said.

Staff writers Christopher Quinn, Kristina Torres, Gertha Coffee, Laura Diamond, D.Aileen Dodd, Gracie Bonds Staples and Matthew Dempsey contributed to this article.