Isle students
exceed national
average on testIt was the third year
in a row that Hawaii did
well on the ACT exam
Hawaii students taking the college-entrance ACT test continued to score higher than their counterparts across the country, although the state's overall score dipped slightly this year, according to results released today.
Public and private school graduates scored an average of 21.8 in Hawaii, compared with 20.8 nationally, out of a maximum of 36 points. Last year, the figures were 22 for Hawaii and 20.8 nationally.
"Our composite score of 21.8 is among the top fourth of states," said Greg Knudsen, spokesman for the state Department of Education, noting that state scores ranged from 17.5 to 22.6.
"This is the third straight year that we've surpassed the national average in all subject areas as well as the composite score."
The ACT Assessment is a curriculum-based achievement test made up of four separate exams in English, reading, mathematics and science, whose results are also combined into a composite figure. Students applying to college may choose to take either the ACT or the SAT, which measures just math and verbal abilities.
Altogether, 2,194 students in Hawaii, or 16 percent of the class of 2003, took the ACT. Nationwide, a record 1.2 million students -- 40 percent of all graduating seniors -- did so.
The SAT tends to be more popular in coastal states, while the rest of the country favors the ACT.
Students taking the ACT include public, private and home-schooled students. More than half of those taking it in Hawaii last year were in public school, Knudsen said.
Hawaii students did especially well in the math portion of the ACT, scoring 22.7, compared with 20.6 nationally. They also outpaced the national average in science, 21.5 to 20.8; in reading, 21.8 to 21.2; and in English, 20.9 to 20.3.
Hawaii's English scores have climbed steadily over the last five years, from 20.3 to 20.9.
"People think that language arts are our weakness, but we're doing pretty well," Knudsen said.
Nationally, students struggled with math and science. Only 26 percent reached the benchmark for college readiness in science (scoring 24 points or higher), and 40 percent did so in math (scoring 22 or higher.) On the English test, 67 percent hit that benchmark, scoring 18 points or more.
"We've heard a lot of talk recently about the inadequacy of students' writing skills," said Richard L. Ferguson, ACT's chief executive officer. "However it appears that the more critical problems are in science and math."
He said the main reason is that too few students are taking challenging math and science courses in high school.
