Hawai'i students boost average score on ACT

By Jean Chow
Advertiser Staff Writer

Hawai'i students capped their fifth straight year of solid performance on the ACT exam, improving slightly this year and propelling the state to a tie with Montana for 11th best in the nation, according to a report released yesterday.

Last year, the state ranked 13th nationally.

The national average remained steady at 21.0 for the fifth consecutive year.

The ACT, formerly known as the American College Testing Program, is a college preparatory exam often used as an admissions test by colleges and universities. Unlike another college admissions test, the SAT, which is separated into math and verbal sections, the ACT covers four areas — English, math, reading and science reasoning.

Hawai'i scores increased in three of the four subtests this year; reading scores remained the same as previous years. All four subtest scores are higher than the national subtest averages.

However, the number of Hawai'i students who took the ACT decreased this year to 2,722, down from 2,826 last year.

Department of Education officials do not know why there was a decrease, but said it could depend on the colleges where students are interested in applying. Some do not require ACT scores.

Nineteen percent of Hawai'i students took the test this year, compared to an average of 38 percent nationally.

Officials were pleased with the increase in scores.

"This is the first time since 1995 that Hawai'i's English subtest score is higher than that of the nation," said Paul LeMahieu, state superintendent of schools. "Since these scores are a reflection of both public and private school students, it's a good sign of what is going on in the state as a whole."