The ACT and SAT tests are rivals. The SAT has suffered recent blows with credibility but continues to be the predominant test taken on the east and west coasts.
Good News/Bad News
More minority students are taking the SAT and ACT tests this year than ever before. That is great news. Students of minority are aspiring to college like never before. That will have positive rewards not only for the students but the economy. However, since minority students have historically scored lower than whites, the average SAT scores are in decline. This can be misleading.
ACT tests are predominantly taken in the Midwest and South. SAT tests are more popular in the east and west coasts. The Midwest tends to be more white and the coasts tend to have more minority students. This factor alone could account for the ACT test rising and the SAT declining.
SAT
A perfect score on the SAT is 800 on the verbal portion. The highest possible score in math is also 800. The average reading score this year is a 502 which is down from 503 last year. Math is down three points from 518 to 515.
The Stats
There are some interesting facts surfacing from the recent SAT tests.
- 1.5 million seniors took the SAT.
- Hispanic, black and Asian-American students were 39 percent.
- 35 percent of those taking the SAT are the first in their family to attend college.
- This is the largest proportion of minority test-takers since 1926, when the SAT was introduced.
The College Board
The organization that oversees the SAT testing is The College Board. The president of The College Board, Gaston Caperton, said, "The larger the population you get that takes the exam, it obviously knocks down the scores." This is why using ACT or SAT scores to judge a high school is grossly inaccurate. Example: The average ACT score at one high school may be 24 but only 49% of the students took the test. Another school could have an average of 22 on the ACT test but 95% of the students took the test. Initially, you may be impressed with the school that had an average score of 24. But, in reality, the school with the score of 22 did better because the majority of the students took the test. The second school is actually producing better results.
Rich vs. Poor
The SAT data shows that minority and low-income students lag behind middle-class white students. However, the gap is slowly shrinking.
Average Scores
- Students who applied for financial aid scored an average of 501 in reading.
- Students who applied for financial aid scored an average of 508 in math.
- Black students scored an average of 433 in reading.
- Black students scored an average of 429 in math.
- Puerto Rican students scored an average of 459 in reading.
- Puerto Rican students scored an average of 454 in math.
- White students scored an average of 527 in reading.
- White students scored an average of 534 in math.
Fair Test
There is an organization called Fair Test at www.fairtest.org, that opposes the requirement of taking standardized tests for college entrance. Public education director Robert Schaeffer says, "The 10-year trend shows math scores steadily rising and critical reading scores moderately rising until the new test was introduced, and suddenly they plunged." Schaeffer would like to see both the ACT and SAT no longer required.
The ACT Test
Test scores released in August of 2007 show that the ACT scores slightly increased. The Midwest could be doing a better job educating students or there could be fewer minority students in the Midwest to account for the higher scores.
Related articles: College Admission Timetable, College Enrollment Reaching Peak, Popular College Majors
Read previous articles on Educational Issues.
Copyright article 2007 Barbara Pytel. All Rights Reserved.
