SAT Scores Hold Steady as Minority Participation Rises

SAT scores held steady for 2008 high school graduates even as participation rose among minority students and those who are part of the first generation in their families to go to college, the College Board reported today.

Nationwide, the number of students taking the college entrance exam surpassed 1.5 million for the first time, up 8 percent from five years ago and up nearly 30 percent over the past decade. Forty percent of the test-takers were minority students, up from 39 percent last year, and 36 percent were among a group described as first-generation college-goers, up from 35 percent.

College Board officials greeted the boost in participation as a sign that an increasingly ethnically and economically diverse group of high school students aspire to earn a college degree.

Gaston Caperton, president of the College Board, said the pool of test-takers "more than ever . . . reflects the face of education in this country."

"It's essential that all students strive to attend college -- and then succeed in their classes and, ultimately, graduate," Caperton said. "We're gratified to see that our country is moving increasingly toward being a nation of college graduates."

Critics say the SAT is losing influence as some colleges are making the test optional for admissions.

Still, some educators, policymakers and others concerned about high school quality viewed it as a bright spot that the SAT scores were unchanged from last year even as the test-taking pool expanded and diversified. In recent years, several efforts have been targeted at improving the quality of high school courses and expanding academic options to ensure students are ready for the rigors of college.

Scores initially dipped after the exam was revised and expanded three years ago. But that downward trend leveled off with the Class of 2008.

Average scores among this year's graduating class were: critical reading, 502 (out of 800); math, 515; and writing, 494. The combined average score was 1511, on a 2400-point scale.

Story comes courtesy of Maria Glod of the Washington Post.