ACT Scores Continue to Fall

[randomparent]

Originally Posted by PullMyFinger

My community is not having this problem.

Neither is mine. For the past several years, the average ACT score at our high school has been on the upswing, exceeding a 26 with all 3000+ students taking the test through 2017 and putting the school in fourth place for all high schools in Colorado, including private high schools. That's none too shabby. The high school shifted to the SAT for the class graduating in 2018 with an average score of 1340. The average score for the ACT in 2018 jumped to a 29, but since it was not required of graduating seniors, only about 650 took the test, so that would have been expected.

[MPowering1]

Originally Posted by residinghere2007

Interesting - only 43% of students in IL took the test according to this link

I know in MI that 100% of students were required to take ACT a few years ago in their junior year. Not sure if that is the case today as I read that they were switching to SAT.

Here in Ohio, at my son's school all the kids take the PSAT and SAT, not sure if this is statewide but it is district wide for us in my area.

Particularly interesting because IL is one of the 25 states that requires testing. It would be the poorest performing students who didn't take it, which would explain why our score went up.

You can see the requirements for the 25 states, including Ohio, here:

https://www.edweek.org/ew/section/mu...at-or-act.html

[Quick Enough]

Originally Posted by North Beach Person

So? Go back and look for why, or rather to which students, AP courses are marketed. The better school systems always had them.

The rationale for all the school reform programs is clearly stated, they all are stated pretty clearly. And in Maryland whatever County you're in didn't get a waiver to opt out.

" The better school systems always had them."


Is it the "school system" or the students themselves. You DID teach in PG county.

[North Beach Person]

Originally Posted by Quick Enough

" The better school systems always had them."


Is it the "school system" or the students themselves. You DID teach in PG county.

AP was always offered in PG. What changed was who took them. In most school systems you had only the top students ending up taking the tests. Then, say around 15 years ago, every student in the class had to test. At first the schools paid 1/2 the fee then the school system picked up the entire cost (@$700K when I left. The money came from a variety of grants from Gates and other sources). The point I was trying to make that when the pool expanded the scores went down.

What I was more addressing was school reform. No matter how "good" the school system was deemed to be it still had to sign on. In Maryland the State Board makes that decision, in other states individual school systems do. And "school reform" was always aimed at the lowest achieving cohort, which is different in every system or even state.

In Maryland that cohort is typically populated by minorities. In Pennsylvania it's poor, rural Whites.