At Onslow County Schools, 331 out of 1,752 junior students taking the science portion of the ACT met the college readiness benchmark in the 2022-23 school year, according to the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.
Science scores among the district’s schools rose to 18.9% compared to the previous school year, when 18.7% of students were considered ready for post-secondary education.
Onslow Early College students stood out from schools in Onslow County Schools in science, with almost 84.8% of the 11th-graders hitting the ACT benchmark in the 2022-23 school year (39). Meanwhile, students from Northside High School struggled the most on the science portion, and only 10.5% were considered ready for college.
For comparison, North Carolina saw 26% of its students meeting or exceeding the ACT benchmarks for science during the 2022-23 school year.
Besides science, 39% of Onslow County Schools 11th-graders met English college readiness benchmarks in the 2022-23 school year. In reading, 36.2% of students were ready for college, and math scores revealed 20.1% of juniors also met the standard. Overall, Onslow County Schools had an average college readiness of 12.1% across all ACT areas.
North Carolina’s education system is still grappling with the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to the 2022-23 ACT results, college readiness among North Carolina students falls short of pre-pandemic levels, with only 17.1% meeting benchmarks.
Additionally, the state’s performance is lagging behind the national average, which currently stands at 21%.
| School | Met or Exceeded Benchmarks (2021-22) | Met or Exceeded Benchmarks (2022-23) |
|---|---|---|
| Onslow Early College | 83% | 84.8% |
| Swansboro High School | 25.1% | 24.7% |
| Dixon High School | 18.9% | 20% |
| Richlands High School | 16.5% | 19.9% |
| Jacksonville High School | 14.9% | 16% |
| White Oak High School | 13% | 16% |
| Onslow Virtual Secondary | 15.4% | 13.6% |
| Southwest High School | 16.6% | 12.9% |
| Northside High School | 14.5% | 10.5% |
| Onslow County Schools | 18.7% | 18.9% |
