Results of College Admissions Testing in Texas for 1998-99 Graduating Seniors

118 Pages·2000·0.32 MB·English

Results
of College
Admissions
Testing
in Texas
for 1998-99
Graduating
Seniors
Texas Education Agency Austin, Texas August 2000
Page 1
Citation. Texas Education Agency. 2000. Results of College Admissions Testing in
Texas for 1998-99 Graduating Seniors. Publication Number GE00-601-04. Austin, TX:
Texas Education Agency.
Keywords. SAT, ACT, college admission, testing, acknowledgment, accountability, high
school, scores, research and evaluation, graduate, TASP
Material in this publication is not copyrighted and may be reproduced. The Texas Education
Agency would appreciate credit for the material used and a copy of the reprint.
Additional copies of this document may be purchased using the order form in the back of
this publication.
Additional information about this report may be obtained by contacting the Texas Education
Agency, Office of Policy Planning and Research, Research and Evaluation Division, at
[phone], or the web: http://www.tea.state.tx.us/research/.
For information regarding administration, preparation for, and scoring of the SAT examina-
tion, contact the College Board’s Southwestern Regional Office at [phone], or the
web: http://www.collegeboard.org/.
For information regarding administration, preparation for, and scoring of the ACT
Assessment, contact ACT, Inc., Southwest Region, at [phone], or the web:
http://www.act.org/.
Page 2
R
ESULTS OF
C A T
OLLEGE DMISSIONS ESTING
T 1998-99
IN EXAS FOR
G S
RADUATING ENIORS
R E D
ESEARCH AND VALUATION IVISION
O P P R
FFICE OF OLICY LANNING AND ESEARCH
T E A
EXAS DUCATION GENCY
1701 N C A
ORTH ONGRESS VENUE
A , T 78701-1494
USTIN EXAS
A 2000
UGUST
i
ii
P
REFACE
Since 1989 the Texas Education Agency has reported selected results of college admissions tests
for graduating seniors. In this 12th annual report, results are presented from the College Board’s
SAT I: Reasoning Test (formerly the Scholastic Aptitude Test, or SAT) and the ACT, Inc.,
(Enhanced) ACT Assessment for 1998-99 graduating seniors.
Since the fall of 1990, SAT/SAT I and ACT score data have been included in Texas’ Academic
Excellence Indicator System (AEIS). The AEIS was mandated in summer 1990 Texas legislation
(Senate Bill 1) to establish a system of school academic performance accountability to local com-
munities and school boards and to state education and legislative officials. Use of SAT and ACT
data in the accountability system for acknowledging high levels of campus and district participation
and performance began in 1993-94 and continues to date.
iii
A
CKNOWLEDGMENTS
This report was prepared by the Texas Education Agency’s Research and Evaluation Division in an effort to promote
understanding of the college admissions test scores of graduating seniors and to suggest areas for school-level educa-
tional attention.
Appreciation is expressed for the capable work done by ACT, Inc., staff (ACT Assessment data) and Educational
Testing Service staff (College Board’s SAT I: Reasoning Test score data) in providing the necessary college admissions
test score data for this report. In addition, staff members in the Austin, Texas, regional offices of both ACT, Inc., and
the College Board have been extremely helpful over the years in facilitating TEA’s access to these test score data.
This report was produced with assistance from Yvonne Liang of the Performance Reporting Division, Office of Policy
Planning and Research.
Commissioner of Education
Jim Nelson
Department of Finance and Accountability
Ron McMichael
Deputy Commissioner
Office of Policy Planning and Research
Criss Cloudt
Associate Commissioner
Research and Evaluation Division
Nancy A. MacCabe
Director
Project Staff
Linda L. Hargrove
Project Director
Angie H. Liu
Systems Analyst
Spring W. Lee
Systems Analyst
Editorial Assistance
Richard Kallus
Planner
Vicky A. Killgore
Information Specialist
iv
T C
ABLE OF ONTENTS
Preface............................................................................................................................................................iii
Acknowledgments..........................................................................................................................................iv
Abstract...........................................................................................................................................................vi
Overview .........................................................................................................................................................1
1999 SAT I and ACT Results in Review ........................................................................................................1
Interpretative Issues.........................................................................................................................................3
Score Scales.......................................................................................................................................3
Access to Testing...............................................................................................................................4
Specific Uses of Score Results in Texas ...........................................................................................4
Data Sources......................................................................................................................................7
Texas and National Trends..............................................................................................................................7
Table 1. 1998-99 Mean SAT I Scores, Percentages Meeting Score Criterion, and
Volume Tested by Gender and Ethnic Group for Texas and the Nation.......................................8
Table 2. 1998-99 Mean ACT Scores, Percentages Meeting Score Criterion, and
Volume Tested by Gender and Ethnic Group for Texas and the Nation.......................................9
AEIS Indicators of Texas College Admissions Test Results ........................................................................10
Table 3. Numbers and Percentages of SAT I- and/or ACT-Tested Graduates and
Examinees At or Above Criterion Score on Either Test..............................................................10
Figure 1. Trends in Percentages of SAT/SAT I- and/or ACT-Tested Graduates...........................11
Texas and the Other States............................................................................................................................11
Figure 2. Trends in Percentages of SAT/SAT I and/or ACT Examinees At or Above
Criterion Score on Either Test......................................................................................................12
Table 4. 1999 State SAT I and ACT Mean Scores and Percentages of All Graduates Tested......13
State and District Percentages of SAT I- and ACT-Tested Students............................................................14
Districts and Campuses Within Texas...........................................................................................................14
District, Campus, and Student Characteristics Data......................................................................................15
Considerations for Educational Action in the Schools..................................................................................15
References.....................................................................................................................................................17
Appendix A ...................................................................................................................................................21
Table 1-A. Mean SAT/SAT I Scores by Ethnicity for Texas and the Nation,
1986-87 Through 1998-99............................................................................................................23
Table 2-A. Mean ACT Scores by Ethnicity for Texas and the Nation,
1986-87 Through 1998-99............................................................................................................24
Table 3-A. SAT/SAT I and ACT Examinee Totals and Ethnic Group Percentages
for Texas and the Nation, 1986-87 Through 1998-99.................................................................25
Appendix B....................................................................................................................................................27
Notes About Tables in Appendix B...............................................................................................................29
Table 1-B. 1998-99 Mean SAT I Scores by District and Campus.................................................31
Table 2-B. 1998-99 Mean ACT Scores by District and Campus...................................................53
Table 3-B. 1998-99 College Admissions Testing AEIS Results by District and Campus ............75
Table 4-B. 1998-99 SAT I and ACT Mean Scores, Percentages Tested, and Combined
Percentages Scoring At or Above AEIS Criterion by District ANALYZE Categories...............97
Glossary of 1998-99 ANALYZE Category Descriptions ...........................................................................101
v
Abstract. The participation and performance of Texas’ 1998-99 public school graduates on
the College Board’s SAT I: Reasoning Test and the ACT, Inc., ACT Assessment was
investigated, along with results from other states and the nation. The highest combined
number of Texas public school graduates ever—113,807 or 61.8 percent—took either the
SAT I or ACT before or during 1998-99. That is, a greater number of Texas graduates than
ever before sought external feedback, via SAT I or ACT examination results, about their
academic readiness for college. Performance as measured by the combined number of tested
graduates achieving either SAT I Total scores of 1110-1600 or ACT Composite scores of
24-36—30,901—was highest in 1999. The percentage of SAT I- and ACT-tested graduates
scoring within these higher ranges on either test was 27.2 percent in 1999—a 2.2 percentage
point gain since 1991. African Americans, Hispanics, Whites, males, and females also
showed similar trends in overall improvement since 1991. Most encouraging for all 1999
Texas graduates is that while the numbers tested increased since 1998, the state’s mean
performance held steady at 20.3 on the ACT Composite and was virtually the same at 993 for
the SAT Total. The percentage of all Texas SAT takers completing 20 or more academic
course credits continued to increase, as did the percentage of ACT takers completing an ACT-
defined core set of academic courses. Thus, the most general suggestion for strengthening
SAT I and ACT test performance overall, or students’ academic readiness for college, is to
focus on improving the academic preparation of all students while also encouraging testing
participation.
vi
O
VERVIEW
Results for 1998-99 graduating seniors are reported from the College Board’s SAT I: Reasoning Test and
from the ACT, Inc., ACT Assessment. (The SAT I, a revised but comparable test, replaced the original
Scholastic Aptitude Test [SAT] effective March 1994.) In this report, Texas statewide, district, and campus
results are displayed along with aggregate results for the nation and other states. Included also are selected
test score trends and scores among student groups and among selected groupings of Texas regular and non-
taxing public school districts as defined by the Texas Education Agency (TEA). The report also contains
state, campus, district, and various district grouping summaries of the combined SAT I and ACT results, as
defined within Texas’ Academic Excellence Indicator System (AEIS) (TEA, in press-b). Report purposes are
to promote understanding of the diversity existing among tested graduates and to suggest areas for educational
action in the schools.
1999 SAT I ACT R R
AND ESULTS IN EVIEW
A brief review of 1999 SAT I and ACT results is provided to help reinforce the targeting of improvement
efforts in areas under the most direct control of schools—that is, student access to educational opportunities
and testing participation. Beginning with 1995-96 examinees in previous TEA reports, SAT I results have
been reported on the recentered score scale. Thus, all prior years’ SAT I score results in this report are re-
ported on the recentered score scale. For interpretation purposes, note that comparisons among aggregate
scores from any educational entity, state, or group are best made when testing participation rates, student
characteristics, and education and policy contexts are similar. Highlights below focus on differences between/
among Texas and the nation and other states, Texas school districts, various types of students, and students
within schools.
•
In 1999, numbers of both SAT I- and ACT-tested graduates were up from the previous year—up 3.7
percent for the SAT I and 1.6 percent for the ACT in Texas and up 4.0 and 2.4 percent, respectively, for
the SAT I and the ACT nationally. In Texas, the highest number of graduates ever took one of the two
examinations; there were 104,144 SAT I-tested graduates and 65,094 ACT-tested graduates.
•
The last decade showed some recovery over the previous decade’s decline in both Texas and national
SAT/SAT I averages, with relatively more improvement in Texas within the last 13 years. On the
recentered scale in 1999, this relatively larger 13-year gain in Texas still held true even though Texas’
mean SAT I Total score slipped slightly to 993, 23 points below the nation’s mean of 1016. In 1998,
Texas at 995 was 22 points below the nation at 1017. It is encouraging that the state’s verbal performance
held steady, while math performance slipped by only two points, as the number tested again increased
substantially over the past year.
•
Texas versus national ACT score trends mirrored SAT/SAT I score trends over the same period. Even
with state and national gains in the number of ACT examinees, both the 1999 Texas average ACT
Composite score at 20.3 and the national average at 21.0 remained unchanged from 1998.
1
•
Although SAT I-tested students in Texas had less academic preparation than students nationally, percent-
ages completing 20 or more credits improved from 23 percent in 1991 to 48 percent (versus 51% nation-
ally) in 1999. While 1999 SAT I- and ACT-tested African American and Hispanic students had fewer
academic credits than White and Asian American students, Texas SAT I-tested females since 1998 no
longer completed proportionately fewer physics and calculus courses than males. Texas SAT I-tested
males more often than females reported plans for receiving college advanced placement or credit in
chemistry, computer science, and physics. Altogether, the number of students reporting plans for receiv-
ing college advanced placement or credit was up across college courses in general.
•
Even with growth in numbers and percentages of ethnic minority students tested in recent years, most
Texas minority ACT scores, except for the ACT English test, have shown some improvement since 1991.
Although increasing percentages of African American and Hispanic students completed core academic
credits over the past few years, scores of White and Asian American students still tended to be higher.
Except for Hispanics, Texas SAT/SAT I scores across ethnic groups continued improving more than
scores nationally from 1987-1999.
•
A relatively higher percentage of 1999 Texas public school graduates took the SAT I (50.1%) compared
to the ACT (30.0%); altogether, 61.8 percent (down 3.0 percentage points from four years ago but up 0.1
percentage point since 1998) took the SAT I and/or the ACT, based on unduplicated student counts.
These percentages were below the highest 1999 state percentages reported for SAT I-tested graduates in
Connecticut (80%) and New Jersey (80%) and for ACT-tested graduates in Mississippi (82%).
•
Generally consistent with the separate Texas SAT/SAT I and ACT mean score results, the percentage of
African American (7.8%) and Hispanic (11.0%) public school students scoring at or above the SAT/SAT
I and/or ACT criterion has improved by 1.3 percentage points for African Americans and by 0.7 percent-
age points for Hispanics since 1991. The percentages of Native American (28.3%), White (35.6%), and
Asian American (43.9%) students scoring at or above criterion were still higher than those of other ethnic
groups. Percentages meeting criterion for the three largest ethnic groups were highest in 1994-95. Rela-
tive to criterion, male students still out-performed female students, but the gap between males and fe-
males has narrowed since 1991.
•
In general, states with lower percentages of SAT I-tested seniors tended to show higher state mean SAT I
scores, and vice versa. A similar relationship between state mean ACT scores and percentages of seniors
tested was extremely weak. In Texas, the simple relationship between district average SAT I or ACT
scores and district percentage of seniors tested was negligible.
•
Considering 1999 SAT I and ACT results together for 1003 public school districts (including charter
schools) with graduating seniors or test score data indicated that the vast majority (894) of districts
participated in both SAT I and ACT testing; only 23 districts showed no testing participation. A total of
937 districts had five or more graduates taking the SAT I and/or ACT.
•
Consistent with previous findings, SAT I Total and ACT Composite scores tended to go up as the values
of certain demographic variables rose, including district wealth, student family income, district percent-
age of non-low-income students, district average teacher salary, and district percentage of teachers with
advanced degrees.
2