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MATH vs READING · SOUTH CAROLINA

South Carolina: where math and reading scores diverge

South Carolina public schools with the widest gap between math and reading proficiency. Same students, same test, only the subject changes.

Schools in this report
40
widest divergence in state
Most reading-ahead
-60 pp
Charleston Development Academy
Smallest reading lead
-29 pp
Military Magnet Academy
SC PUBLIC SCHOOLS · WIDEST MATH-READING DIVERGENCE
SchoolCityLevelMath %Reading %Math − Reading (pp)
Charleston Development AcademyCharlestonElementary16.7%76.6%-59.9
Lowcountry Montessori SchoolBeaufortCombined17.1%62.6%-45.5
Coastal Montessori CharterPawleys IslandElementary25.9%68.2%-42.3
New Ellenton STEAM Magnet MiddleNew EllentonMiddle20.4%60.7%-40.3
Midlands STEM Charter SchoolWinnsboroCombined16.1%53.6%-37.5
McBee HighMcBeeHigh18.8%55.0%-36.2
Palmetto Scholars AcademyNorth CharlestonHigh40.1%75.5%-35.4
Tall Pines STEM AcademyAikenMiddle38.9%73.6%-34.7
Leavelle McCampbell MiddleGranitevilleMiddle13.6%48.3%-34.7
Hunter-Kinard-Tyler HighNeesesHigh5.4%39.8%-34.4
North District MiddleVarnvilleMiddle19.9%54.1%-34.2
Highland Springs MiddleNorth AugustaMiddle28.7%62.7%-34
Merriwether MiddleNorth AugustaMiddle37.6%71.2%-33.6
M. B. Kennedy MiddleAikenMiddle22.2%55.3%-33.1
Felton Laboratory Charter SchoolOrangeburgElementary25.4%58.4%-33
St. Stephen MiddleSt. StephenMiddle13.8%46.7%-32.9
North Augusta MiddleNorth AugustaMiddle29.6%61.7%-32.1
Saluda Trail MiddleRock HillMiddle25.7%57.8%-32.1
Long MiddleCherawMiddle14.7%46.6%-31.9
Riverwalk AcademyRock HillCombined37.2%68.9%-31.7
Marrington Middle School of the ArtsGoose CreekMiddle49.4%80.9%-31.5
Hillcrest MiddleDalzellMiddle23.3%53.9%-30.6
Compass Collegiate AcademyN CharlestonElementary33.3%63.9%-30.6
Leslie M. Stover MiddleElginMiddle23.7%54.2%-30.5
W. C. Sullivan MiddleRock HillMiddle29.1%59.5%-30.4
GREEN Charter School LowcountryN CharlestonElementary16.8%47.1%-30.3
Chesterfield-Ruby MiddleChesterfieldMiddle21.9%51.8%-29.9
Macedonia MiddleMoncks CornerMiddle24.9%54.6%-29.7
Philip Simmons MiddleWandoMiddle38.4%68.1%-29.7
Landrum MiddleLandrumMiddle38.8%68.5%-29.7
Cane Bay MiddleSummervilleMiddle32.9%62.6%-29.7
Dutch Fork MiddleIrmoMiddle30.7%60.2%-29.5
Lewisville MiddleRichburgMiddle27.8%57.1%-29.3
White Knoll MiddleWest ColumbiaMiddle20.7%49.8%-29.1
Castle Heights MiddleRock HillMiddle24.6%53.5%-28.9
Heyward Gibbes MiddleColumbiaMiddle8.5%37.2%-28.7
Great Falls HighGreat FallsHigh24.5%53.2%-28.7
Carolina Springs MiddleLexingtonMiddle28.5%57.1%-28.6
Allegro Charter School of MusicNorth CharlestonHigh19.6%48.1%-28.5
Military Magnet AcademyNorth CharlestonHigh17.7%46.2%-28.5
40 of 40 rows · Brick-and-mortar only; virtual schools and specialized-population schools excluded. Most recent year with both a math and a reading all-students result; schools must have 150+ students and at least 5% proficient in each subject (a floor that drops suppression/coding artifacts). A negative gap means students are more often proficient in reading than math.↓ Download math-reading-gap-by-state-sc.csv

How to read this list

Each school is scored on its most recent year carrying both a math and a reading (English Language Arts) all-students proficiency figure on South Carolina's native assessment. The final column is the difference: math proficiency minus reading proficiency, in percentage points. A negative number means a school's students are more often proficient in reading than in math; a positive number means the reverse. Because both figures come from the same students taking the same test under the same cut-score policy, the gap is an apples-to-apples comparison in a way that raw cross-state proficiency rates are not.

A wide gap is not automatically a problem. Arts, language-immersion, and humanities-focused programs often post strong reading and weaker math; STEM and career-technical programs often do the reverse. But a persistent, schoolwide divergence is worth a parent's attention, because it can also flag a staffing gap, a curriculum weakness, or a math-anxiety culture that a single year of scores would hide.

What is excluded

Brick-and-mortar schools only: virtual academies and cyber charters are removed because their results are noisy and rarely reflect a school families choose geographically. Specialized-population schools (state schools for the deaf or blind, therapeutic and juvenile-justice placements, and NCES special-education or alternative-education campuses) are also excluded, because state proficiency rates are not a comparable metric for them. Schools must have at least 150 students and at least 5% proficient in each subject, a floor that drops suppression and coding artifacts.

Source data

South Carolina state assessment results loaded into allk12, joined to the NCES Common Core of Data school directory. Refreshed when the state publishes a new assessment file. See the national report for the state-by-state summary.

HOW TO CITE THIS REPORT

Anyone is welcome to cite or republish these findings. Please credit allk12.com and link back to this page so readers can verify the underlying data.

allk12 (2026). "South Carolina: the math vs reading proficiency gap by school." Retrieved from https://allk12.com/reports/math-reading-gap/south-carolina
For interview requests or custom data pulls: [email protected]
DOWNLOAD THE DATA
math-reading-gap-by-state-sc.csv
RELATED
Math vs reading gap by state · South Carolina test scores · Best South Carolina schools · All South Carolina schools
DATA NOTICE

allk12 is independent and not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by NCES, the US Census Bureau, any state education agency or assessment program, or any other government agency. Source data is compiled from public records and provided "as is," without warranty of accuracy or completeness. You rely on it, and any analysis derived from it, at your own risk. See the full disclaimer.