Ohio's high school seniors set records on the state's 12th-grade proficiency test, the Ohio Department of Education announced Tuesday.

        Of the 93,580 students who took all five parts of the test — writing, reading, math, citizenship and science — 50 percent passed.

        In Greater Cincinnati, the districts with the largest percentage of seniors passing all five parts of the test were:

        • Indian Hill, 80 percent.

        • Wyoming, 79 percent.

        • Madeira, 76 percent.

        • Forest Hills, 73 percent.

        • Kings Local, 73 percent.

        “This is a very difficult test to motivate students for,” Indian Hill Superintendent David Quattrone said. “The 12th-grade test has been the biggest challenge for us. But what pleases me most is that we are showing continuous improvement.”

        Indian Hill increased its pass rate in reading and science, and is working toward an overall pass-rate goal of 95 percent, Mr. Quattrone said.

        With 44 percent, Cincinnati Public Schools posted the highest pass percentage of the state's eight large city school districts, which also includes Akron, Canton, Columbus, Cleveland, Dayton, Toledo and Youngstown.

        “The good news here is that our schools are changing in a way that can produce a higher result,” Superintendent Steven Adamowski said.

        Cincinnati's nine high schools showed an overall increase of 6 percent in the pass rate, with 94 percent passing reading.

        Of the five areas, the district met the state standard of above a 60 percent pass rate in all but math. That's an improvement over last year, when the district met standards in only writing and citizenship.

        The improvements could help the district move out of the “academic emergency” category when state report cards are recalculated.

        The test is taken only by 12th-graders who already passed all parts of the Ninth Grade Proficiency Tests. The 12th-grade tests are not required for graduation and are not mandatory otherwise. The exam tests what students have learned through the first semester of 12th grade, said Patti Grey, department spokeswoman.

        Senate Bill 1, which has passed the Senate and is now in House committee, could eliminate the 12th-grade proficiency test.

        Locally, the districts that posted the lowest pass-rate percentages were:

        • North College Hill and New Miami, 19 percent.

        • Reading, 30 percent.

        • Goshen and Lockland, 32 percent.

        • Williamsburg, 34 percent.

        Williamsburg Superintendent Robin Wiley said her district showed improvement over last year's scores. The district performed better than officials predicted, meeting standards in every area except math.

        Analysis of last year's test data and diagnostic tests for every student helped the district focus teaching efforts on reading and writing.

        “We really did target the reading,” Ms. Wiley said. “Now we will target math more and continue the push on the reading, which we feel is an integral part to increase success in all of these areas.”

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