High School Seniors Improve Act Scores

Idaho’s high school seniors improved their scores, for the third year in a row, on the 1996 American College Test.

They earned a state composite score of 21.3 compared to the national composite of 20.9, education officials said.

Some 9,235 students took the ACT college entrance exam this year. The number of students participating in the ACT has grown steadily over the past four years, said Sally Tiel of the state Department of Education staff.

Usually, as the number of students increases, the scores tend to drop. That hasn’t been the case in Idaho, Tiel said.

“This growth shows we are preparing our students with the basic skills they need during their K-12 years,” she said. “In addition, we are scoring as well as our neighboring states, which means we are also producing students who will be able to compete in whatever field they choose.”

ACT includes separate tests in English, math, reading and science reasoning. Results aren’t available on a school district or individual school basis.

, DataTimes