TGI STAFF – Results better in other parts of test Hawaii’s college-bound public school students in the class of 2001 continued show mixed results in College Board tests, according to the state Department of Education. The students continued to improve
TGI STAFF –
Results better in other parts of test
Hawaii’s college-bound public school students in the class of 2001 continued show mixed results in College Board tests, according to the state Department of Education.
The students continued to improve on their verbal scores but declined in math results on their SATs, officials said.
College Board scores are presented as combined scores (all public and private school students who took the test) and are broken out with separate results for students from public, religious and independent schools.
Results of the SAT are used to help predict students’ potential for academic success in colleges and universities.
The combined scores in Hawai’i dropped four points in math but remained above the national average in that subject. Combined verbal scores for the state’s students fell two points.
The combined average math score in Hawai’i dipped from 519 in 2000 to 515 (the national average remained 514), while the state’s combined average verbal tally decreased from 488 last year to 486. The gap between Hawai’i and the nation in that category increased, as the national average rose one point to 506.
Paul LeMahieu, superintendent of the state’s public schools, said the improvement in verbal scores “is encouraging. We cannot be satisfied, though, until we narrow the gap with the national average in both verbal and math scores.”
LeMahieu said an emphasis on educational standards “will help us move in that direction.”
Hawai’i results by school category include:
– Public schools. Math scores decreased by three points from the previous year to 488), while verbal scores increased by two points to 463. The latter caps a five-point gain in the last two years. The figures remain below the national averages, however.
– Religious schools. Students lost seven points in math (dropping from 553 to 546) and five points in verbal (from 528 to 523). Officials said the losses offset gains made in 2000.
– Independent schools. Students’ scores rose six points in math (to 598), well above the national average. Verbal scores dropped four points to 545.
College Board officials said the SAT scores are “a strong indicator” of potential for academic success but aren’t an accurate measure of state, district and school rankings.
Fifty-two percent of Hawaii’s students in the class of 2001 completed the SAT, compared to 45 percent nationally. Of the 7,332 students who took the test, 65 percent attended public schools.
The largest number of college-bound students in Hawai’i apparently are planning to stay in-state for their higher education. Students taking the SAT may designate which colleges they want to receive their test scores, and three Hawai’i campuses were named most often – University of Hawai’i-Manoa (62.8 percent), Hawai’i Pacific University (23.9 percent) and UH-Hilo (16.6 percent).
The rest of the 10 most-designated colleges, in order, were University of Washington, Oregon State University, University of Southern California, Chaminade University, University of Nevada-Las Vegas, UCLA and University of Oregon.
