Georgia students who took the most recent high school graduation test performed worse than previous classes on social studies and math exams, overshadowing an improvement in science.
Twenty-two percent of the students flunked a new social studies test on the first try, a disturbing failure rate compared to 13 percent last year and 14 percent in 2008.
"That's the highest it's been in a long time," said Kathy Cox, state schools superintendent. "It's a new test, a harder test. We knew it was going to take a dip."
Georgia's social studies curriculum was more difficult, an update needed to make the state more competitive with other states and students globally, Department of Education spokesman Matt Cardoza said.
"If we didn't increase the rigor, we're ultimately doing a disservice to our kids," Cardoza said.
Georgia's passing rate for the math test dropped from 94 percent last year to 91 this time.
Increased class sizes had no bearing on the lower math scores, an issue the state department of education studied and dismissed, Cox said.
Giving advanced warning, Cox expects math scores to suffer again when a new math test is introduced next year.
"It'll take [another] dip, we know that," she said.
Statewide, 93,572 students took the Georgia high school graduation test. Students can't receive a high school diploma unless they pass the four curriculum tests and a writing test. The test data released on Wednesday involved 11th-graders taking the test for the first time. The exams covered English, science, social studies and math. This year's passing rate in English was 90 percent, the same as last year. Students can take the test more than once.
Science passing rates rose slightly from 88 percent in 2009 to 90 this year, which proved to be a landmark result.
"We got a 90-percent pass rate for the first time," Cox said, receiving educators' applause at Wednesday's state school board meeting.
The state spent money on science mentors and laboratories, and it paid off, Cox said.
Cox was encouraged by the science pass rate for first-time, African-American test-takers that jumped from 41 percent in 2005 to 79 percent in 2010. That meant 19,000 more African-American students were on track to graduate in their senior year.
"It's huge. It's huge. It's going to change Georgia," Cox said.
However, an achievement gap between white and Asian students and black and Hispanic students remained in several areas. Twenty-three percent of those who passed the English test with honors were Asian, 19 percent were white, 9 percent were Hispanic and 6 percent were black.
"We're still struggling with a gap in Georgia," Cox said. "We have to get more and more of our black and Hispanic students in the advanced proficiency and honors categories. It's all about expectations. We've got to get in and work with our students of color to make sure they can pass the first time."
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