Georgia schools are given a B-minus grade by Education Week in its annual "Quality Counts" survey of the nations schools released today.
The weekly newspaper gave an overall grade of American schools a C.
The state's highest grade, an A-minus, was given for its state curriculum standards, testing program and attempts to hold public schools accountable for poor performance.
The lowest grade, a D-plus, came in the evaluation of scores on national exams as well as graduation rates.
The analysis revealed that Georgia eighth-graders have made little progress in math skills during the past four years — a poor showing that places the Peach State in 50th place in that area.
And, while the state's graduation rate has improved faster than other states, Georgia still ranks 49th in helping students earn a high school diploma, according to the report.
Just 56.1 percent of the state's public school students graduated in 2004 — the last year evaluated — compared with the U.S. average of 69.9 percent.