SOL Three-Year Improvement Trends

• In the "All students" category, students have consistently achieved at least 90 percent passing rates³ in grade 3 mathematics and science as well as grade 5 mathematics and reading.
• Black, Hispanic, economically disadvantaged and LEP students, and students with disabilities achieved significant gains on several tests, with 5 to 12 percentage-point increases in grades 3, 4 and 5 mathematics and 17 to 20 percentage-point gains in Virginia Studies (grade 4).
• These improvements in performance include achievement at the advanced level on the SOL tests, with students from all groups demonstrating 10 to 24 point increases in the percent pass advanced in grades 3 through 5 mathematics and Virginia Studies (grade 4).
• In addition, students from various groups made significant gains in the pass advanced levels in grade 3 science ("All", Hispanic, White and LEP students, and students with disabilities) and grade 5 reading ("All", Asian and White students, and students with disabilities).

• "All" students achieved at least 90 percent passing rates in grades 7 and 8 reading, and grade 8 science in 2011.  All groups achieved this standard among middle school students taking Algebra I and Geometry.
• Black, Hispanic and LEP students as well as students with disabilities demonstrated 6 to 9 percentage-point increases in grade 8 science passing rates and 20 to 28 percentage-point increases in US History I (grade 6).
• Hispanic, LEP and economically disadvantaged students as well as students with disabilities achieved significant gains in grade 8 reading (6 to 9 percentage points), and grade 6 math (5 to 8 percentage points).
• These improvements in performance include achievement at the advanced level of the SOL tests, with multiple groups demonstrating at least 5 point increases in the percent of pass advanced in Algebra I ("All", Asian and Hispanic students, and students with disabilities); grade 6 mathematics (Hispanics and Whites); and U.S. History I ("All" students, Asian, Hispanic, White, LEP and economically disadvantaged students, and students with disabilities).  

• White students consistently achieved at least 90 percent passing rates on all SOL tests taken in high school:  English-Reading; Algebra I, Geometry and Algebra II; Earth Science, Biology and Chemistry; and Virginia/U.S. History and World Histories I and II.  "All", Asian and Black students reached this standard in Algebra I in 2011.
• Black and LEP students had significant increases in passing rates in Biology (5 to 10 percentage points) in addition to a 5 percentage point increase in Earth Science among Black students.  
• Students with disabilities achieved significant gains in Algebra I (8 percentage points) and World Geography (10 percentage points).
• These improvements in performance include achievement at the advanced level of the SOL tests. "All" students demonstrated at least a 5 percentage-point increase in the pass advanced rate in Algebra I and Geometry.  Hispanic students had a similar gain in English-Reading.