Howard County students in the third through eighth grades posted some of the highest overall scores in Maryland on state-mandated exams in reading and math this year.

In fact, one school -- Worthington Elementary -- had 100 percent of its students reach proficiency in reading, a first for the county.

The county saw the highest gains over last year's test results by students with limited English proficiency, students receiving free and reduced meals, black students and Hispanic students.

Overall, 91 percent of students passed the reading test, while 86 percent passed the math test -- a slight increase from Howard's 2006-2007 results, according to data released by Maryland education officials this week.

"We are absolutely thrilled with this year's MSA results," Deputy Superintendent Sandra Erickson said in a statement. "... We work very hard in Howard County to use data to identify needs, to provide resources to support our classroom teachers and to meet the learning needs of each child. These results indicate that our approach is working."

Howard's performance on the reading test was among the best in the state, second only to Carroll County's 92 percent and tying with Calvert County. In math, Howard tied Calvert and was third in the state after Worcester County (88 percent) and Carroll County (87 percent).

The state average pass rate for the reading test was 82 percent; the average pass rate for math was 76 percent.

State officials report students' scores on the tests, which are administered to public elementary and middle school students as a requirement of the federal No Child Left Behind Act.

The law requires students to pass the tests by 2014.

The tests are designed to measure each school system's cumulative performance on the core subjects, as well as the performance of certain groups of students that are broken down by grade, race, gender, economic status and those who receive special education services, or those with limited English skills.

In Howard elementary schools, nearly 93 percent of students passed the reading test and 89 percent passed the math test. Fourth-graders posted the strongest performance in both subjects, with nearly 92 percent passing the math test and 94 percent the reading exam.

In middle schools, 89 percent of students passed the reading test and nearly 84 percent the math exam. Eighth-graders posted the weakest performance in the county, with nearly 80 percent passing in math and nearly 87 percent in reading.

Howard school officials set a goal for each school to post a 70 percent pass rate on the exams. All elementary schools met or exceeded the target in reading and math, with Worthington Elementary scoring an unprecedented 100 percent proficiency in reading.

Worthington, in Ellicott City, is the first county school in which all of its students performed at proficient or advanced levels on any MSA, Erickson said.

Math targets tougher to hit

While all middle schools exceeded the target in reading, three failed to hit the target in math, including Patuxent Valley (67.0 percent), Oakland Mills (68.9 percent), and Wilde Lake (69.9 percent). Middle schoolers at Cradlerock School, which also enrolls elementary students, also failed to meet the math target, posting a 55.1 percent pass rate.

Middle schools will begin using new interactive software that is designed to help engage students in math to help boost scores, said Terry Alban, executive director of the schools' testing office. In schools that missed the target pass rate in math, a support teacher also will assist teachers in engaging students in math, she added.

Also in middle schools, the performance of Hispanic and black students increased in reading and math from the previous year, according to the results.

The reading pass rate of Hispanic students rose from 64 percent to 74 percent, while that of black students rose from 68 percent to 77 percent.

The math pass rates of Hispanic middle school students increased 7 percent, to 66 percent, while the pass rate of black students rose nearly 6 percent, to nearly 63 percent.

The reading pass rate of middle school students who do not speak English fluently increased about 12 percent over last year, and the students receiving free and reduced price lunches saw their reading scores increase by more than 10 percent over last year. Both groups also saw gains in their math scores.

State officials also assess whether each school, as a whole, has made significant progress on the tests from the previous year.

Officials will release those reports later this year, along with the results of the High School Assessment, which tests the basic proficiency of high school students in algebra, biology, English and government.

State assessment data is available at www.mdreportcard.org.

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