Hannibal High School math test scores above state average

HANNIBAL, Mo. — Happy would be an understatement.

Daniel Miller couldn’t wait to share the good news at Tuesday’s Hannibal School Board meeting that Hannibal High School students’ math test scores are significantly higher than both state and local averages.

“I’m so proud of our students,” said Miller, the high school’s math department chair.

Miller is especially proud considering Hannibal students’ performance on algebra end of course exams in 2021. That year, 29.4 percent of Hannibal students tested at a proficient or advanced level, which was six percent lower than the state average and 3.5 percent lower than the average of seven other area schools — Mark Twain, Highland, Monroe City, Palmyra, Macon, Clark County, and Louisiana. Also, 38.3 percent of Hannibal students were at a below basic level, nearly six percent higher than the state average and 9.7 percent higher than those area schools. 

Fast forward to 2024, and half of the Hannibal students tested in the proficient or advanced range, and only 19 percent were below basic.

“It’s a culture of success that we’re building at Hannibal High School,” Miller said. “We have more students performing in the proficient and advanced category and significantly fewer in the below basic category, which is just great all the way around.”

Miller didn’t know just how much these test scores had improved before diving into the numbers.

“I really didn’t,” Miller said. “When I started comparing to the state, our conference and some of the local schools, we just see like ‘oh, we really have built something that’s great for us as professionals but more importantly for our students and community.’”

While teachers like Miller prepare the students as best they can for the test, the performance on said test is ultimately up to the students.

“We aren’t even supposed to look at the test,” Miller said. “We’re there, we prepare them. Kids will ask, ‘Mr. Miller, what questions are going to be on here?’ I don’t know, but we do the best we can. Our students are phenomenal.”

Miller said Hannibal’s homeroom in the middle of the school day has likely made a difference.

“It’s kind of like a study hall where we can bring in kids who are struggling,” Miller said. “We try to find kids who would benefit from being in a math homeroom where they get extra time. They can go to other places if they need to, but we build relationships with those kids, we build a rapport with those kids. They feel comfortable with us, so they want to achieve, they want to do well, and they feel safe and comfortable to grow and achieve.”

As for goals for the future, Miller said it is important to keep things in perspective.

“We want to help kids achieve and flourish where they can,” Miller said. “Not every kid is going to be advanced, and that’s okay. We just want each individual student to achieve and flourish as much as they possibly can, and that looks different from year to year.”

That testing success isn’t limited to math, however. In English, the number of Hannibal students’ EOC scores that fall in the advanced category has increased each of the last two years from 1.78 percent in 2022 to 6.14 percent in 2024. More than half — 53.8 percent — of students’ scores were in the proficient to advanced range in 2024.

In his presentation to the board, English department chair Blake Niemann also noted a significant decrease in the number of students in the below basic category. In 2021, 32.8 percent of students tested in that range. That number has decreased each year since to 5.78 percent in 2024. Niemann said English teacher Christine Poage’s observation about the correlation between students enjoying coming to school and performing better is ringing true more and more in Hannibal.

“She said it’s all about relationships,” Niemann said. “If you can get a kid excited to come to school, they’re going to do better, which is indicated by those below basic scores dropping substantially. If a kid has a smile on their face, they’re listening, they like being there, they’re going to do better, and I think we’re getting to that point, which is great.”