The short story is that Mathews County Public Schools appear headed for yet another year of full accreditation as a result of student performance on this past spring’s Virginia Standards of Learning tests.

The long story, however, is a little more complex.

While final SOL numbers have yet to be released, preliminary figures show student performance has dipped dramatically in math; not just in Mathews County, but in school divisions across the commonwealth.

As a division, only 61 percent of Mathews students demonstrated proficiency in math, far below the 70 percent threshold required for accreditation through the Virginia Department of Education. Last year, 82 percent of Mathews students passed their math SOL tests.

Statewide, the 2011-2012 number was a little better—68 percent—but still below the 70 percent threshold. In 2010-2011, 87 percent of Virginia students passed their math SOLs.

In spite of this year’s low math scores, Mathews schools are st...