GAINESVILLE - Led by North Hall, last year's SAT scores for Hall County high schools show a significant improvement over last year, according to school system officials.
The systemwide average is 1,016 which beats the Georgia average and is ten points less than the national average.
In the only high school in the Gainesville School System, Gaineville High, posted a 977 - two points lower than last year.
School-by-school breakdown of Hall County high schools:
School #tested Verbal Math Total
Chestatee 66 494 490 984
East Hall 87 498 512 1010
Flowery Branch 67 483 471 954
Johnson 102 501 505 1006
North Hall 150 523 515 1038
West Hall 145 507 512 1019
All schools 617 511 505 1016
Georgia 57,838 494 493 987
U.S. 1,419,007 508 518 1026
Georgia was one of only six states to improve average SAT scores by three or more points this year, moving up a notch after two years in a row of finishing last in the nation among states on the test.
Hispanic students showed the largest gains as Georgia surpassed South Carolina, which dropped three points, for 49th in the nation.
Georgia's average total test score increased three points, from 984 in 2003 to 987 this year. Meanwhile, South Carolina dropped from 989 to 986, giving Georgia a one-point edge.
Schools in the District of Columbia had the lowest overall average score, 965.
The national average was 1,026 the same as last year. The highest possible score is 1,600.
In Georgia, 73 percent of projected graduates took the test in 2004.
Still, government leaders, educators and others are quick to quote the scores when trying to win political points or make easy comparisons of educational prowess.
Gov. Sonny Perdue blasted then-Gov. Roy Barnes over Georgia's low scores during his 2002 election campaign. State schools Superintendent Kathy Cox also campaigned on the low scores that year, saying SAT improvements would be a key focus during her term.
``In light of most of the nation staying flat, the positive movement Georgia has shown is very encouraging,'' Perdue said Tuesday from New York City, where he is attending the Republican National Convention. ``We're going to celebrate this trend, but we all know this is not the destination and we want to continue to move forward.''
Hispanic students in Georgia beat the national average, gaining four points on both the verbal and math portions of the test and topping the national average for Hispanic students.
Participation rates for minority students also increased up 28 percent for Hispanic students and 11 percent for black students, whose average score remained unchanged from last year.
State schools Superintendent Kathy Cox credited state efforts to increase the number of students taking advanced-placement classes and a decision last year by the legislature to pay for every 10th-grader in the state to take the test's practice version, the PSAT.
``Paying for that test, I believe, is one of the main reasons we're seeing a payoff in increased scores,'' Cox said.
Teachers have long maintained that the SAT comparisons are a poor way to measure classroom achievement.
``I don't think we can place any valid or wonderful importance to it,'' said Tim Callahan, spokesman for the Professional Association of Georgia Educators. ``It's nice not to be last, but I don't think anybody's going to print a bumper sticker saying, 'Hooray for Georgia We're 49th.' ``
Georgia's average SAT score has increased 18 points over the past five years. The average total score in 1999 was 969.
(The Associated Press contributed to this story.)
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October 20th, 2024
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