Scores sagging for high school grads taking ACT college test
AP PHOTO/JACQUELYN MARTIN, FILE
In this May 6, 2015 file photo, a computer-based practice ACT English test is displayed on a computer monitor in Washington. Nearly two-thirds of this year’s high school graduates took the ACT college entrance exam, and their scores suggest that many remain unprepared for the rigors of college-level coursework.
WASHINGTON » Nearly two-thirds of this year’s high school graduates took the ACT college entrance exam, and their scores suggest that many remain unprepared for the rigors of college-level coursework.
The testing company said Wednesday that only 38 percent of graduating seniors who took the exam hit the college-prepared benchmark in at least three of the four core subjects tested — reading, English, math and science — down from 40 percent last year. The benchmark is designed to measure a strong readiness for college.
The average composite score also declined a bit, down from 21 to 20.8 this year. The four tests are scored on a scale of 1 to 36. The composite is the average of the four scores. The vast majority of colleges use the composite in admissions.
ACT’s Paul Weeks says a decline in scores was expected, given the changing demographic of the testing population.
“Almost 2 out 3 students are taking the ACT and what’s happened is the testing cohort has become increasingly representative of students at large,” said Weeks, senior vice president for client relations, in an interview.
A number of additional states also are giving the ACT to all of their 11th-grade students. “That group of new states showed up in this year’s grad class report so we would have expected it to have an impact” on scores, Weeks said.
Nearly 2.1 million graduating seniors took the ACT, up from 1.9 million in the last school year.
By comparison, 1.7 million graduating seniors in 2015 took the SAT, the other major college entrance exam. The College Board expects to release updated 2016 numbers for the SAT later this fall.
Of the ACT-tested high school graduates this year, 61 percent met the English benchmark of 18 points, which indicates a student is likely ready for a college composition course and would earn a “C” or better grade.
In reading, 44 percent met the 22-point mark that suggests readiness for a college-level social-sciences course. For math, 41 percent met the 22-point threshold that predicts success in an algebra course. And in science, 36 percent hit the 22-point score that predicts success in an entry-level biology course.
In contrast, 34 percent of 2016 grads did not meet any of the four benchmarks. Weeks called that number alarming, an indication that those students are likely to struggle with first-year courses and end up in remedial classes that will delay degree completion and increase college costs.
The report showed a relatively wide gulf, by race, in the percentages of graduates hitting three or more of the college-ready benchmarks. Forty-nine percent of white test-takers met the three-or-more benchmark, compared to 11 percent of African Americans and 23 percent of Hispanic test-takers. But the gaps between the groups haven’t shifted that much, for better or worse, in the last four years.
When students register for the ACT, they can designate a college major. For 2016 grads, the most popular major selected was nursing, followed by pre-medicine, business administration and management and mechanical engineering.
Other findings in the annual score report:
—Massachusetts had the highest average composite score, at 24.8. It was followed by Connecticut and New Hampshire, both with a 24.5 average composite score.
—In the last four years, the proportion of students saying they would like to pursue vocational/technical and two-year degrees increased by 2 percent. The proportion aspiring to higher levels of education dropped by 6 percent.
The testing company says 20 states funded ACT testing for all public school students in the 2016 graduating class. Those states are: Alabama, Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming.
14 responses to “Scores sagging for high school grads taking ACT college test”
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Ah, but Superintendent Kathryn Matayoshi is out there with her dog and pony show, with her public relations campaign rousing public support for the Department of Education and its bloated bureaucracy. She will save the day. She has already demanded pay raises for the bureaucrats as recognition for their superior performance.
Matayoshi and her “executives” have been nothing more than care-takers, rearranging the deck chairs on a sinking ship. Their major “accomplishment” was winning the Race to the Top (RTT) money, none of which reached the classrooms. The centerpiece of the RTT was the ridiculous teacher evaluation system, which has been all but trashed. In the meantime, the severe teacher shortage continues, and if it weren’t for HSTA’s efforts and our having a new governor, nothing would have been done to address the sweltering classrooms.
Anytime the educational bureaucracy is caught not properly teaching students, low test scores, failing inspection results, bureaucrats have one answer.
Educational bureaucrats will always refuse to take responsibility for their willful failure to teach our keiki. Instead they will spin it as they are not given all the funds they need to do their jobs. Trust us they whine, give us another billion dollars and watch us go.
Yeah, right. Anytime there is talk of upgrading education the unions are right there to raid the funds for pay raises, increased benefits, undeserved bonus payments. All about taking care of #1, priority #1. Students? If we have the time after working higher priority union business.
Not necessarily disagreeing with your position. Question though, what do you think the solution is? That is, where should additional funds be spent? What is the “upgrading education” you referenced?
Agree. The DOE’s “bloated bureaucracy” ensures that funds will never get to the classroom where the tire meets the road. Listen to the teachers. Let them tell us what they need to succeed. For starters, they need cool classrooms and offices. They need cutting edge hardware and software, instructional support, lighter teacher-student ratios. They need the freedom to experiment with technological options that are far more cost effective than traditional classroom approaches. I can guarantee that none will say the funding they need should be diverted to the DOE bureaucracy.
Spot on! These bureaucrats add nothing to the education of our kids.
Except this article is not about Hawaii, it’s about the nation as a whole. (Hawaii gives the ACT and companion tests at lower grade levels to all students) But again the article is not about Hawaii, it’s about everybody.
As a whole the U.S. has been going downhill since the computer age, cell phones and elimination of discipline in the schools. Until the parents understand that the Educators deserve more respect , this will continue.
Educators will get more respect when they EARN it.
By allowing themselves to be “represented” by a labor union, they have forfeited all claim to be a professional.
REAL professionals bargain and set fees for themselves.
With the rises of teacher unions the focus of “education” has shifted from what is best for children to what is best for adults.
IMHO the importance of college has diminished with the expansion of useless subject material. How many art history, dance and philosophy majors actually get jobs in their chosen field? Not many. The system is duping kids and their parents into mortgaging their future for a useless piece of paper. The kids come out of high school without being able to balance a checkbook or to calculate interest, how are they supposed to make a decision on whether or not to take on a huge debt for dubious job prospects? College is turning into a scam.
Not sure what your overall message is, other than “schools suck.” For one thing you jump back and forth between criticizing high school and college.
At universities, liberal arts majors tend to do well in the long run, even if they have to work outside of their specialty, because they get a well-rounded education while also being able to balance their checkbook. Art history majors, with high communication skills, become good managers. A proportionally higher percentage of philosophy majors, good analytical thinkers, gets into law school. Dance majors, I don’t know much about, but I’m sure they’re studying what they love. Arts and humanities are important facets of civilized life, and as long as most college grads can manage their checking accounts AND they like their majors, no reason to abolish certain subjects.
It is true that too many high school grads cannot balance a checkbook or even read. But since most of those kids won’t be going to college, we don’t have to worry about what they’ll major in. We should focus on what’s going on at the high school AND earlier grade levels, starting at kindergarten.
They’ve already tried changing focus, from balanced education, to test performance training, to STEM (science, technology, engineering,math). Thise changes have not worked. Having visited many public school classrooms, I can tell you what would work: teacher quality.
Low pay, poor facilties & equipment, and frustration with too much paperwork and red tape discourage would-be good teachers from going into education fields. The shortage of teachers adds more work to the ones who are there, and the frustration cycle continues.
Reshuffling the curriculum to give false hope and to get incumbents reelected has not worked. The only effective solution is to spend more on schools and teachers.
UH Community colleges new student stats have indicated that 30% have to enroll in remedial high school math and English courses.
We can thank “reality television” as having a hand in the low test scores. Look at the popularity of the “Kardashians” and “Big Brother”. Hardly intellectually stimulating shows and a generation’s getting “educated” by these shows. That along with the entitlement mindset…..when we were kids we fundraised by working and not standing at an intersection BEGGING FOR MONEY.
Society is doomed if nothing changes soon.
eh brah……….no act……hawaii need rubbishman too