NORFOLK, Va. - — Standards of Learning Test results for the 2022-2023 school year were released Wednesday and they continue to show the impact of the pandemic on students.
Among third to eighth graders, more than half failed or are at risk of failing the SOL for reading, according to the Dept. of Education. Two-thirds of the group failed or are at risk of failing the math SOL.
"Our students have fallen off-track and they are struggling. They are struggling developmentally. They're struggling emotionally, and they're struggling academically," said Education Sec. Aimee Guidera.
In Hampton Roads, the results vary by community.
In Norfolk, about half of students passed the math SOL, but that's up from 46% the year before.
In Virginia Beach, 77% passed the math SOL, which was a slight increase compared to the year before.
"What we know is that our students are not meeting proficiency in pre-pandemic worlds," said Superintendent of Public Instruction Lisa Coons. "They are not preforming like their pre-pandemic peers."
In addition, Gov. Youngkin said one-in-five students is chronically absent from school, meaning they miss more than 18 days a year.
Williamsburg, James City County, Yorktown
Parents upset with Williamsburg James City County schools' new attendance policy
"When we look at the impact if a student misses 18 or more days, they drop 18% compared to their peers in their reading scores," said Coons.
There is an effort to turn the scores around, called the All In Virginia Plan.
On Wednesday, state lawmakers passed a budget to send more than $400 million in extra money to schools to tackle these issues.
Gov. Youngkin is recommending they spend 70% of it on high intensity tutoring, 20% focused on reading, and 10% focused on absenteeism.
"We know that high intensity tutoring works," said Youngkin. "We know that the science of reading works, and we know that being in the classroom for in-person learning as opposed to absent in a chronic fashion works."
Local Pass rates
Chesapeake
Reading: 79%
Writing: 72%
History and Social Science: 74%
Math: 77%
Science: 74%
Hampton
Reading: 70%
Writing: 62%
History and Social Science: 65%
Math: 72%
Science: 67%
Newport News
Reading: 59%
Writing: 53%
History and Social Science: 45%
Math: 56%
Science: 53%
Norfolk
Reading: 61%
Writing: 49%
History and Social Science: 50%
Math: 50%
Science: 55%
Portsmouth
Reading: 60%
Writing: 45%
History and Social Science: 54%
Math: 53%
Science: 52%
Suffolk
Reading: 72%
Writing: 65%
History and Social Science: 60%
Math: 69%
Science: 63%
Virginia Beach
Reading: 82%
Writing: 73%
History and Social Science: 73%
Math: 77%
Science: 77%
