CCSD students shine on SC READY

Two important statistics in this assessment are:

1. ELA Achievement: 65% of CCSD students in grades 3–8 are meeting or exceeding expectations — an all-time district high and 5.4 percentage points above the state average.

2. Math Achievement: 54% of CCSD students are meeting or exceeding expectations in math, which is also a record high and 10.1 percentage points above the state average.

👉 Together, these highlight both record-setting performance and CCSD’s strong lead over statewide results.

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Historical results on 2024-2025 exams confirm continuous improvement throughout the district

Charleston County School District (CCSD) shared results from the South Carolina Department of Education’s SC READY assessments for the 2024–2025 school year. These results reflect the performance of all students tested in grades 3–8, including those who may have only recently enrolled in CCSD schools. Even with this broader measure, CCSD students achieved historic gains, once again setting district records and outperforming the state in English Language Arts (ELA), Math, and Science.

It is important to note that SC READY results released today reflect every student tested, whether they have been enrolled in CCSD schools for years or for only a matter of days. In contrast, the data that will be reported on the state’s annual School Report Card in October will only include students who have been continuously enrolled in CCSD. Because of this distinction, Report Card data typically shows even higher levels of performance than the statewide SC READY release. CCSD anticipates that the October release will once again confirm significantly stronger outcomes for its students.

SC READY ELA

Based on the results of all students tested, 65 percent (65.0) of CCSD 3-8 grade students are “Meeting or Exceeding Expectations,” which is 5.4 percentage points higher than the state (59.6).

In addition, the district is outperforming the state in each grade level. Based on all students tested, CCSD is at least two (2) points ahead of the state scores for each of the tested elementary grades (3-5) and at least seven (7) points for each of the middle grades (6-8):

• CCSD third graders – 64.5 percent; state – 61.7 percent
• CCSD fourth graders – 66.1 percent; state – 63.5 percent
• CCSD fifth graders – 67.4 percent; state – 62.5 percent
• CCSD sixth graders – 63.0 percent; state – 56.0 percent
• CCSD seventh graders – 65.4 percent; state – 58.2 percent
• CCSD eighth graders – 63.6 percent; state – 55.7 percent

CCSD has broken its historical record yet again, with 65.0 percent of students reading at or above grade level, an all-time high on the SC READY (first administered in 2016), beating last year’s proportion of 61.2 percent.

Additional notes related to CCSD’s performance on the 2024-2025 SC READY ELA assessment:

• CCSD third, fourth, fifth, seventh, and eighth graders improved their proficiency scores compared to last year.
• Thirty (30) CCSD schools, as opposed to ten (10) in 2023-24, improved their overall score by at least five (5) percentage points. Seven (7) CCSD schools saw double-digit gains from the previous year.

Based on results for all tested students, the following major student groups improved districtwide from last year: Black (+5.9), Hispanic (+2.4), White (+3.1), Other Ethnic Groups (+2.9), Special Education (+5.1), General Education (+3.6), Multilingual Learners (+1.0), English Proficient (+4.7), Pupils in Poverty (+5.9), Pupils NOT in Poverty (+1.5), Male (+4.5), and Female (+3.1). The district credits these gains in part to the impact of the Weighted Student Funding formula, which provides schools with supplemental support for pupils in poverty, special education, and multilingual learners.

SC READY Math

Based on the results of all students tested, CCSD students are 10.1 percentage points better (54.0) than the state (43.9) on the 2024-2025 assessment in this subject and improved by 1.8 percentage points compared to last year. Just like ELA, this is the highest the district has scored on the math portion of SC READY.

In addition, the district is outperforming the state in each grade level. CCSD is at least five (5) points ahead of the state scores in grades 3-6 and is over twelve (12) points higher in grades 7 and 8.

• CCSD third graders – 63.1 percent; state – 56.3 percent
• CCSD fourth graders – 59.6 percent; state – 53.7 percent
• CCSD fifth graders – 57.1 percent; state – 48.1 percent
• CCSD sixth graders – 49.3 percent; state – 39.4 percent
• CCSD seventh graders – 48.6 percent; state – 34.0 percent
• CCSD eighth graders – 44.6 percent; state – 32.4 percent

“The positive improvement in these mathematics results from our students is a testament to the high-quality instruction and support provided by teachers and the intentional engagement of leaders to ensure exceptional conditions for learning existed for all students,” said Deputy Superintendent Dr. Luke Clamp.

Additional notes related to CCSD’s performance on the 2024-2025 SC READY Math assessment:

• CCSD third, fourth, fifth, seventh, and eighth graders improved their proficiency scores compared to last year.
• Five (5) CCSD schools improved by more than ten (10) percentage points, and another fourteen (14) schools increased by five (5) points or more.
• Multiple student groups in CCSD made gains from last year to this year, including the following: Black (+2.0), Hispanic (+3.0), White (+1.2), Other Ethnic Groups (+0.2), Special Education (+1.5), General Education (+1.7), Multilingual Learners (+2.1), English Proficient (+2.6), Pupils in Poverty (+2.7), Pupils NOT in Poverty (+0.5), Male (+1.4), and Female (+2.2).

SC READY Science

SC READY Science is administered to fourth and sixth-graders in South Carolina. The assessment was last reported in 2022-23, as a result of updated standards and assessment in 2023-24.

Based on the results of all students tested, CCSD students are 5.8 percentage points better (54.5) than the state (48.7) on the 2024-2025 assessment in this subject and improved by 2.5 percentage points compared to the last reported Science scores in 2022-23. Just like ELA and Math, this is the highest the district has scored on the Science portion of SC READY.

In addition, CCSD is 4.8 points ahead of the state in grade 4 and 6.7 points ahead of the state in grade 6.

• CCSD fourth graders – 54.0 percent; state – 49.2 percent
• CCSD sixth graders – 55.0 percent; state – 48.3 percent

Additional notes related to CCSD’s performance on the 2024-2025 SC READY Science assessment:

• CCSD fourth and sixth-graders improved their proficiency scores compared to 2022-23Fourth graders improved by +2.9 percent
  Sixth graders improved by +2.0 percent
• Twelve (12) CCSD schools improved by more than 10 percentage points, and another nineteen (19) schools increased by five (5) points or more.
• Multiple student groups in CCSD made gains from two years ago, including the following: Black (+4.5), Hispanic (+2.1), White (+1.4), Other Ethnic Groups (+2.2), Special Education (+2.2), General Education (+2.6), Multilingual Learners (+1.3), English Proficient (+3.9), Male (+2.3), and Female (+2.6).