Published: August 27, 2008 10:07 am            

Indiana’s overall SAT scores drop slightly for class of 2008

Hoosier students’ math scores increase

INDIANAPOLIS — SAT scores in math improved for Indiana’s high school class of 2008, but reading and writing scores dropped — marking yet another decline in state scores since the test was revamped in 2006.

The SAT results released Tuesday further eroded gains Indiana students have made over the last two decades.

Indiana’s 2008 graduates scored an average of 496 of a possible 800 points on the critical reading portion of the college entrance exam — down one point from the class of 2007. Average math scores increased, going up a point from last year to 508 for 2008 graduates.

Scores on the writing portion of the test, which was first added in 2006, fell from 483 in 2007 to 481 for this year’s class.

Nationwide, scores remained unchanged from last year — 515 in math, 502 in reading and 494 in writing.

Suellen Reed, Indiana’s superintendent for public instruction, said students need to take tougher classes in high school to prepare for the SAT and college work.

Indiana has started requiring students to take the a more rigorous core curriculum as a graduation requirement, beginning with freshmen who entered high school in the fall of 2007. The state is also offering workshops to help teachers analyze SAT results and is providing students customized SAT study plans, Reed said.

“Now the challenge is twofold: students must take these opportunities seriously, and schools must use test data in making improvements to their curriculum and instructional practices,” she said.

State scores on the SAT had been steadily increasing for several years until the class of 2006 took the redesigned test, which included higher-level math questions and eliminated analogies. Students now take an average of three hours and 45 minutes to complete the SAT, not counting breaks, up from three hours previously.

The College Board, which owns the exam, noted Tuesday that a record number of students — more than 1.5 million — took the test. The growing and more diverse class of test-takers is considered a sign more people are interested in college, said Gaston Caperton, president of the College Board.

“We’re gratified to see that our country is moving increasingly toward being a nation of college graduates,” he said.

But more test takers can also weigh down average scores.

About 62 percent of Indiana students take the SAT, compared with less than 50 percent of students nationwide. So it makes sense, education officials say, that Indiana’s combined score of 1,485 in reading, math and writing continues to lag behind the national average of 1,511.

Only about 20 percent of Indiana high school graduates take the ACT, compared to more than 40 percent nationally, and state scores on that test are consistently higher than national averages.

The most recent SAT scores mirror a trend seen in other tests — that students taking more rigorous classes in high school fare better than those who don’t. Indiana students taking academic core classes scored an average of 516 in math, 504 in reading and 489 in writing. Those who took less rigorous classes scored 472, 482 and 456, respectively.

“We cannot discount the role of student accountability in improving Indiana’s SAT scores,” Reed said. “Students are responsible for taking advantage of the opportunities available to them, and parents must provide the essential support at home that ensures students succeed.”

        

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