Nevada students score near average in college entrance exam

CARSON CITY - College-bound Nevada high school seniors exceeded the national average of a major entrance exam this year, state schools chief Mary Peterson said Tuesday.

The 5,540 Nevada seniors who took the ACT test this year averaged a composite score of 21.5, compared with the national average of 21 out of 36. And it's an improvement of one-tenth of a point for Nevada statewide compared with 1998 state scores.

About 41 percent of Nevada's seniors said they intend to go to college. That's down from about 43 percent the year before.

Peterson also said there's a direct relationship between ACT performance and family income in the state, with scores increasing as income goes up.

Seniors from families with incomes less than $18,000 averaged a score of 19.7. Those from families with incomes between $18,000 and $36,000 averaged 20.6. And those from families with incomes in excess of $36,000 averaged 22.0.

Students who took core classes to help prepare them for college had a 22.3 average, compared with a 19.9 average for students who didn't take all the core basics.

A breakdown of the ACT scores shows Nevada seniors with an average 20.7 score in English, compared with a national average of 20.5; an average 21.3 score in math compared with a national average of 20.7; a 22.1 average in reading compared with a national figure of 21.4; and a 21.4 score in science compared with a national average of 21.

The ACT is given mainly in Western and Southern states. Another test, the SAT, is more common in other regions, especially in the East.

Of the states where more than half of graduating seniors take the test, the highest average composite scores were in Wisconsin with 22.3, Minnesota with 22.1 and Iowa with 22.

The highest average score overall was in Rhode Island where the three percent of the students who took the test there had a composite score of 22.7.

The lowest statewide scores were in Mississippi, 18.7 percent, and in the District of Columbia, 18.6 percent).

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