Texas math and science ACT scores increase;

Composite score holds at record level

(TEA release)

AUSTIN - Texas members of the Class of 2010 have earned the highest mathematics andscience scores posted on the ACT in the past decade, even as the number of test takers rose by 12percent this year.The overall composite score for Texas test takers remained steady at last year’s recordhigh score of 20.8.

 “The Class of 2010 has proven itself to be a pace setter. More of these students are planning to attend college and they set new records by earning Texas’ highest math and science scores. In fact, their average math score is substantially higher than the national average formath. Most of our student groups also outperformed their counterparts nationally,” saidCommissioner of Education Robert Scott.

The ACT is comprised of four sections, English, mathematics, reading and science, and each section is scored on a scale of 1-36. In addition to receiving individual scores for each section, students also receive a composite score, which is an average of the four sections.

Among the Class of 2010, 92,615 Texas seniors took the ACT, compared to 82,640 members from the Class of 2009. Much of the increase is attributed to a fee waiver that allowslow-income students to take the test for free.When underclassmen are considered as well, a total of 188,209 Texans took the ACT thisyear, an increase of 18 percent over the previous year.

This spring, Texas offered high schooljuniors the opportunity to take the ACT or SAT free of charge, and thousands took advantage ofthis offer.

The Texas Education Agency will announce in early 2011 whether this opportunitywill be available this spring for juniors in the Class of 2012.Below are the ACT scores for Texas test-takers over the past decade.

Scores have continued to rise even as the test-taking pool has expanded.


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