School-level results for the Criterion-Referenced Competency Tests were released this week, and most local schools show improvement from last year’s scores.

For the first time, students in third through fifth grade were tested on a social studies curriculum aligned with the Georgia Performance Standards, which are academic criteria the state Department of Education expects all Georgia students to meet.

The state’s pass rate for the new tests was more than 70 percent for each grade. The scores are not comparable to last year’s, which were aligned to the old curriculum.

This year, for the first time, all the CRCTs were aligned to the new curriculum, which requires more rigorous concepts.

“The 2009 CRCT results are very encouraging and show that our students are learning more advanced concepts and are able to apply that knowledge properly,” State Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox said.

The biggest one-year gain in the state on any of the CRCTs was in eighth-grade math. The pass rate was 70 percent, an increase of eight points from last year.

According to the state Department of Education, third-graders who do not pass the reading CRCT are not promoted to the fourth grade, and fifth and eighth graders who do not pass both the reading and mathematics CRCT also are denied promotion.