What does this measure?
The percentage of students considered proficient on the Pennsylvania Keystone Grade 11 Algebra 1 exam.
Why is this important?
Math skills are critical to a variety of careers and important for life skills ranging from budgeting and smart shopping to understanding the news. The Pennsylvania Keystone Exam is one path for high school students to demonstrate readiness for postsecondary success. Proficiency among historically underperforming students can show whether districts and education policymakers have made progress in closing the achievement gap between traditionally underserved groups and other students.
How does our county compare?
In 2019, 74% of students in Lancaster County and 45% of students in the Lancaster City School District passed the Grade 11 algebra exam, representing no change in the County and up from 39% in the District in 2018. In contrast, 54% of historically underperforming students in Lancaster County and 40% of historically underperforming students in the Lancaster City School District passed the exam in 2019, up 1 percentage point in the County and 6 points in the District in 2018. Lancaster County's 2019 proficiency rates were higher than statewide rates of 65% for all students and 44% for historically underperforming students.
Lancaster County has the highest proficiency rate among all students followed by Chester (73%), Cumberland (72%), and York (71%) and the highest performance rate among historically underperforming students followed by York (50%) and Cumberland (47%). Lancaster County's share of historically underperforming students in eleventh grade (42%) is similar to Lebanon (41%), lower than Berks and Dauphin (both 48%), and higher than York (40%), Chester (33%) and Cumberland (31%).
Notes about the data
As assessments vary among states, it is not possible to include comparable data for the nation or other areas in this indicator. Data are from the Pennsylvania Department of Education.
All Students | Historically Underperforming | |
---|---|---|
Pennsylvania | 65% | 44% |
Lancaster County | 74% | 54% |
School District of Lancaster | 45% | 40% |
Hempfield School District | 83% | 62% |
Ephrata Area School District | 83% | 69% |
Elizabethtown Area School District | 70% | 43% |
Lampeter-Strasburg School District | 85% | 57% |
Eastern Lancaster County School District | 82% | 58% |
Donegal School District | 67% | 47% |
Manheim Central School District | 77% | 54% |
Conestoga Valley School District | 82% | 66% |
Columbia Borough School District | 46% | 43% |
Manheim Township School District | 85% | 69% |
Cocalico School District | 77% | 60% |
Penn Manor School District | 80% | 58% |
Pequea Valley School District | 78% | 67% |
Solanco School District | 70% | 54% |
Warwick School District | 74% | 52% |
La Academia Partnership Charter School | 35% | 35% |
Lebanon County | 66% | 43% |
York County | 71% | 50% |
Dauphin County | 53% | 34% |
Cumberland County | 72% | 47% |
Chester County | 73% | 44% |
Berks County | 65% | 43% |
All Students | Historically Underperforming | |
---|---|---|
Pennsylvania | 74,840 | 22,609 |
Lancaster County | 3,278 | 1,005 |
School District of Lancaster | 202 | 157 |
Hempfield School District | 430 | 111 |
Ephrata Area School District | 241 | 87 |
Elizabethtown Area School District | 201 | 40 |
Lampeter-Strasburg School District | 204 | 37 |
Eastern Lancaster County School District | 159 | 38 |
Donegal School District | 139 | 40 |
Manheim Central School District | 178 | 34 |
Conestoga Valley School District | 251 | 83 |
Columbia Borough School District | 39 | 24 |
Manheim Township School District | 331 | 79 |
Cocalico School District | 146 | 38 |
Penn Manor School District | 278 | 83 |
Pequea Valley School District | 86 | 35 |
Solanco School District | 162 | 61 |
Warwick School District | 225 | 51 |
La Academia Partnership Charter School | 7 | 7 |
Lebanon County | 878 | 234 |
York County | 3,313 | 940 |
Dauphin County | 1,610 | 488 |
Cumberland County | 1,486 | 301 |
Chester County | 4,814 | 946 |
Berks County | 2,925 | 946 |
INDICATORS | TREND |
---|---|
Prekindergarten Participation | Increasing |
Student Performance on Grade 3 English | Not Applicable |
Student Performance on Grade 3 Math | Not Applicable |
Student Performance on Grade 8 English | Not Applicable |
Student Performance on Grade 8 Math | Not Applicable |
Student Performance in Grade 11 English | Not Applicable |
Student Performance in Grade 11 Math | Decreasing |
Per-Student Spending | Maintaining |
Students Receiving Special Education Services | Increasing |
Rate of Foster Care Admissions | Maintaining |
Single-Parent Families by Race/Ethnicity | Not Applicable |
Disengaged Youth | Maintaining |
Plans of High School Graduates | Not Applicable |
Enrollment in Local Colleges | Decreasing |
College Graduation Rates | Decreasing |
Brain Drain/Gain | Increasing |
Education Levels of Adults by Race/Ethnicity | Not Applicable |