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Politics : PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Kenneth E. Phillipps who wrote (448199)	8/26/2003 12:23:29 PM
From: Hope Praytochange	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 769667

National SAT Scores Rise By Nancy Trejos Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, August 26, 2003; 11:57 AM The average total SAT score of the nation's college-bound students rose six points this year over 2002, with results on the verbal portion of the exam showing the most significant gains in eight years, according to data released today by the College Board. Latino and African American students, who have become a larger percentage of SAT takers in recent years, generally continued to lag behind their white and Asian counterparts in performance on the college-entrance exam. All minorities made up 36 percent of the country's 1.4 million students who took the SAT this year. The average SAT math score nationally rose three points to 519 and the average verbal score rose three points to 507, for a total of 1026. Locally, scores among public and private school students rose four points in Maryland, eight points in Virginia and five points in the District, compared with the previous year. Some public school systems in the area reported significant gains. Fairfax County, for example, had a 14-point increase over last year, for a total average score of 1110, which far exceeds the national average. Also in Northern Virginia, Arlington County's total score jumped 20 points, to 1072. Among Maryland's public school students, those in Howard County scored, on average, the highest in the state -- with a total score of 1096, followed closely by Montgomery County at 1094. Districts in St. Mary's, Anne Arundel and Calvert counties also reported improvements. D.C. public schools showed a four-point increase in their total average score to 800. Most colleges make their admissions decisions based partly on the SAT -- a two-part, primarily multiple-choice exam. The test has been increasingly criticized, though, for reflecting class and racial differences rather than measuring academic progress. The changes in the test results during the past decade have been significant. The nation's overall math score has increased 16 points since 1993. The verbal score has increased at a much slower pace, with a seven-point spike in 10 years. College Board officials attributed the gains to the higher percentage of SAT takers enrolled in advanced math and science courses, such as calculus and chemistry. At a news conference today in Washington, Gaston Caperton, president of the College Board, said he was pleased with the improvement in scores and with the higher number of students taking the exam. "Usually participation brings scores down," he said. "I think it's a wonderful sign." Still, he said, he was concerned that the minority achievement and gender gaps have persisted. The gap between male and female verbal scores expanded from five points last year to nine points this year. Female students continued to lag behind males on the math portion of the exam as well, but their average math score has increased at a faster rate. The average math score for females has increased 19 points in the past decade; the math score among males has increased 13 points.