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Most South Carolinians are familiar with the phrase, Thank God for Mississippi,
referring to the subpar education systems in both states. For several years, Mississippi and South
Carolina have been among the last in the ranking of states educational systems; quite often
Mississippi is 50th and South Carolina is 49th. While the numbers do fluctuate from year to year,
South Carolina has remained the butt of many jokes about problems with the education system.
According to the South Carolina 2012-2013 Dropout Rates by School table produced by
the South Carolina Department of Education, 24 small schools (1,000 students or fewer) had a
dropout rate of over 4 percent. Twelve large schools (1,000 students or greater) had a dropout
rate of over 4 percent. Of the 12 large schools, half had a dropout rate of over 5 percent, one
reaching as high as 20.8 percent. To put those numbers in perspective, governing.coms article
High School Graduation Rates By State stated the 2012-2013 school year drop-out rate was
22.4percent.
The majority of the worst counties in the South Carolina educational system lie along the
I-95 corridor. The 2007 documentary Corridor of Shame brought the issue to the nations
attention, and the title of the film has become permanently associated with the area. The I-95
Corridor Human Needs Assessment assembled by RTI International reported in 2009 that the
graduation rate for freshmen in South Carolina in the 2004-2005 school year was 60.1 percent;
the United States graduation rate was 74.7 percent. The same assessment showed that out of the
17 counties in Corridor of Shame 15 counties had over 15 percent of adults (adults qualifying as
those16 years and older) lacking basic prose literacy. Eleven counties had over 20 percent of
adults lacking those skills, and four counties had over 25 percent lacking. The state of South
Carolina as a whole had 15 percent lacking, while the average for the I-95 corridor averaged 18
percent lacking. Dr. Abbigail Jefferson, a professor at Winthrop University, said, We realized

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there has to be more in schools than just typical literature introduction. They need to start to
focus on content literacy: how to read math [problems], how do you comprehend math, how do
you read science, and all the areas. If you are 21 and reading on a seventh grade level, youre
going to have problems. [Reading] is such a backbone of what we do and who we are.
Since the education system struggles to provide decent education to its students or even
keep many of the students in school, it is important for the state to help anyone interested in
attaining a high school level diploma get a General Equivalency Diploma (GED). The GED
service defines the test as the only high school equivalency option recognized in all 50 states.
According to the 2006 GED Testing Program Statistical Report, assembled by the American
Council on Education and the General Educational Development Testing Service of the
American Council on Education, test takers must attain an average score of 450 for the tests. To
take pass the individual tests (as opposed to the whole battery of tests), GED candidates must
achieve a minimum score of 410 to pass the GED battery in South Carolina. Receiving an
average score of 450 on the GED battery is equivalent to the top 60 percent of high school
graduates.
The 2006 GED Testing Program Statistical Report shows 30 percent of the GED battery
candidates had been out of school for one year or less; 25 percent had been out of school over 10
years. The average candidate waited eight years before taking the GED battery; the average for
the passing candidates was seven years. Of the passing candidates, 73 percent passed 10th grade
or higher. The majority of candidates in 2006 (89 percent) completed ninth through 12th grade.
The same report refers to the 2000 U.S. Census which shows over 39 million adults (16
years and older) lack a high school diploma. At the time, that number made up 18 percent of the
adult population. In the whole GED testing program in 2006, a mere 1.5 percent of adults

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without high school diplomas took one or more parts of the GED test battery. In essence, one out
of every 100 attempted and passed the GED battery. Approximately 45 percent of candidates in
2006 were between ages 16 and 19. 36.9 percent were between ages 20 and 29, and 10.9 percent
were between ages 30 and 39. 6.7 percent were between over 40 years of age. The 20 to 24 year
old age bracket was the most likely to pass the GED battery.
The South Carolina State Snapshot provided by ED Data Express shows within the 20122013 school year South Carolina contained 1,239 schools and 103 school districts. Concerning
the percent of students by race and ethnicity, the average of black and white high school students
(35.4 percent and 52.9 percent) in South Carolina exceeded the national average (15.5 percent
and 50.5 percent). The national average exceeded South Carolinas average of American Indian
and Alaskan Native students, Asian students, and Hispanic students. The 2006 GED Testing
Program Statistical Report shows that 53 percent of those that took the GED battery were white,
23 percent were African American, and 19 percent were Hispanic. Of the South Carolinian GED
candidates in 2006 that indicated their ethnicity, 59.9 percent were white, 36 percent black, and
2.2 percent of Hispanic origin.
Although South Carolinas average Hispanic population is smaller than the national
average population, foreign born Hispanic males in the South are the population with the highest
likelihood to not have received or completed a high school education according to the 2013
report compiled by the United States Census. Between 50 and 60 percent of that population do
not have a high school education. [The 2006 GED Testing Program Statistical Report shows
only New Jersey and New Mexico required an ESL test for Spanish or French speaking
candidates. However, of the 2006 GED candidates in South Carolina, all spoke English. Three
took the test by audiocassette. Thirty-three candidates utilized the large print editions.] Across

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the nation, foreign born groups are less likely than native born groups to obtain a high school
degree. In the South and across the nation, native born Asians are the most likely to attain a high
school degree.
To become more accessible to all groups as well as individuals, the GED test battery and
program retuned its policies and content in 2013. Some policies remained the same, such as
requiring candidates to be a state residents or have attended school most recently in the state.
South Carolina also still allows GED candidates to take the GED battery without taking and
passing the official GED practice tests. Other areas received more significant changes.
According to Caralee Adams article, High School Equivalency Test Gets a Makeover, in
Education Week, the GED has only been updated three times since its beginning in 1942. The
updates have been almost sporadic. The first update was 36 years after it was founded, but the
next update was only ten years later in 1988. The third update was another 14 years later in
2002. The revamped GED test battery has four subject areas instead of five: literacy,
mathematics, science, and social studies. Reading and writing merged into literacy/language arts
to make it simpler. The content itself has shifted to meet Common Core Standards since that is
what is expected of high school graduates now.
This newest change also brought a change in price. Each state has its own policies
concerning the battery. In 2006, it cost between $60 and $120 to take the GED battery in South
Carolina. This price was the second highest in the nation; the highest was New Mexicos
possible fee of $150. According to the GED Testing Service, it now costs $37.50 to take the test.
Test takers also have two discounted chances for each section if they need to retake any of them.
The reduction in price is possible because of changes in policies and partially because of the
switch to online testing instead of pencil and paper testing.

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As positive as some of the statistics may seem, South Carolina still scrapes the bottom
compared to other states. The testing and completion rate in South Carolina rose from 2005 to
2006, but the passing rate fell 3.4 percent during that time period. The statistics were
disappointing because even though more people were trying to gain an education the numbers of
those who comprehended the material enough to be able to pass slipped. Still, South Carolina
remains hopeful. In 2012, the South Carolina Department of Education released an article titled
SC GED Pass Rate Exceeds National Average Again which shows the state passage rate rose to
77.6 percent from last years 75.3 percent, which beat the national average of 72.2 percent.
The same report stated over the past six years the states GED passage rate increased by 12.6
percent and the number of GED diplomas has risen every year since 2004.
Increasing rates are beneficial but need to be reinforced and expanded to launch the state
of South Carolina forward. Thus far the states efforts through new school programs and
learning abilities outside the school system have made minimal progress as a whole. It is too
early to see if the changes to the GED program and test battery have made significant steps
towards helping its testing candidates. As South Carolina and the nation as a whole move
forward, it is important to remember education is powerful, and the best thing America can do to
help itself is help others reach their academic goals.