2012 SAT RESULTS BACKGROUND

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1 Report from the Office of Student Assessment 29 October 30, 2012 AUTHOR: 2012 SAT RESULTS Douglas G. Wren, Ed.D., Assessment Specialist Department of Educational Leadership and Assessment OTHER CONTACT PERSON: Donald E. Robertson, Ph.D., Assistant Superintendent Department of Educational Leadership and Assessment ABSTRACT This report contains SAT results for high school graduates from the school year in Virginia Beach City Public Schools (VBCPS), the state, and the nation. Data for graduates who took the SAT at least once through June 2012 are included, and only the most recent scores were used for students who tested multiple times. The percentage of students who took the SAT increased from 64 percent of the school year graduates to 66 percent of the graduating seniors from VBCPS high schools during The Virginia Beach mean critical reading score (499) decreased by two points from the previous year but was three points higher than the national mean critical reading score. The VBCPS mean mathematics score (509) increased by five points, while the mean writing score (482) did not change from the previous year. The mean scores on all three sections of the SAT exceeded the mean scores of all of the other school divisions in the Hampton Roads area. In addition, the mean scores for African American students in Virginia Beach surpassed the mean scores for their peers at both the state and national levels for the fifth consecutive year on all three SAT sections. BACKGROUND The SAT, formerly known as the Scholastic Aptitude Test, is the most widely used college admissions test in the nation. Each year over two million students take the SAT. 1 The first version of the SAT was administered to 8,040 students in Since that time, the SAT has undergone numerous revisions based on a variety of factors and variables, including fairness issues, scaling issues, cost, public perception, face validity, changes in the test-taking population, changes in patterns of test preparation, and changes in the college 2 admissions process. The SAT is administered through the College Board, a not-for-profit association representing over 5,900 colleges, universities, Key Topics: Background... p. 1 SAT College-Bound Seniors Reports... p. 2 Characteristics of SAT Test Takers... p. 2 Comparisons With Other Local School Divisions... p. 4 SAT Test Results Within Ranges... p. 5 SAT Participation Rates... p. 6 SAT s by Racial/Ethnic Group... p. 7 PSAT Experience and SAT s... p. 8 SAT Results by High School... p. 8 1 College Board, Why Take the SAT, < accessed on October 3, I. M. Lawrence, G. W. Rigol, T. Van Essen, & C. A. Jackson, A Historical Perspective on the Content of the SAT, College Board, 2003, < accessed on October 3, 2012.

2 and schools across the United States and internationally. 3 The College Board reports that almost all colleges and universities use the SAT to make admission decisions 4 and that the SAT provides students 5 with a path to opportunities, financial support and scholarships. The two types of SAT tests offered by the College Board are the SAT (formerly known as the SAT I: Reasoning Test) and the SAT Subject Tests TM (formerly known as the SAT II: Subject Tests). This assessment brief will focus exclusively on results from the three sections of the SAT: critical reading, mathematics, and writing. SAT COLLEGE-BOUND SENIORS REPORTS The College Board compiles and distributes College-Bound Seniors reports at the school, division, state, and national levels on an annual basis. The data presented in this brief are derived primarily from these reports, which include the most recent scores for students who took the SAT at least once during their high school years. The 2012 College-Bound Seniors reports contain results for students who were expected to graduate during the school year, according to information that was self-reported by students at the time of testing. It is possible that a small amount of data included in the VBCPS reports are from former Virginia Beach students who transferred to another school division after they took the SAT. Similarly, the VBCPS reports will not include results for students who graduated from a Virginia Beach high school and whose most recent SAT administration occurred while the student was enrolled in another school division. Beginning last year with the 2011 College-Bound Seniors reports, there was one significant change in the way that SAT data were reported. Prior to the school year, the reports included only results for seniors who took the SAT through March of their senior year. The participation totals and scores were for this group of students, commonly referred to as the March cohort. As of the school year, the College-Bound Seniors reports included data for all students who took the SAT through June of their senior year not just the March cohort. This group of students is known as the full cohort. Data comparisons over time in this assessment brief will be between the full cohort for the graduating classes of and and the March cohorts of graduating classes from previous years. Consequently, SAT participation for the two most recent graduating classes has been somewhat inflated with the inclusion of the full cohort. Additionally, the College Board indicated that the population of late-starting test-takers has, on average, lower scores, 6 causing a marginal decrease in the mean scores for the full cohort groups compared with the March cohort groups. CHARACTERISTICS OF SAT TEST TAKERS Specific characteristics of SAT test takers at the local, state, and national levels were selected for comparison purposes. Table 1 on the following page provides a summary of demographic information for SAT test takers who graduated in At the time they took the SAT, students were asked to report their ethnicity, gender, highest level of parental education, and family income. In addition, percentages related to the class standing (i.e., senior, junior, sophomore, or freshman) of students during their most recent SAT administration are shown in the table. Because self-report data is dependent entirely on the knowledge and honesty of respondents, some of the percentages in Table 1 may not be completely accurate. Furthermore, some students chose not to respond to these items. There was a substantial increase from previous years in the number of students who did not report their family income. In the past, approximately 60 to 70 percent of SAT test takers at the 3 College Board, Who We Serve, < accessed on October 3, College Board, About the SAT, < accessed on October 3, College Board, About the Tests, < accessed on October 3, College Board, Understanding What s New in the 2011 College-Bound Seniors Cohort, September

3 division, state, and national levels responded to the family income item. In contrast, well over half of the college-bound seniors in the class of chose not to report their family s annual income. As shown in Table 1, the two largest ethnic groups of SAT test takers in both Virginia Beach and Virginia were White and African American students. At the national level, White students comprised the largest group and Hispanic students made up the second largest group. It should be noted that the ethnicity data gathered by the College Board is different from the ethnic and racial reporting guidelines the federal government put in place in fall According to the federal guidelines, all individuals must be classified as either Hispanic or Latino or Not Hispanic or Latino, and individuals may select one or more racial categories (i.e., American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, or White ). 7 These guidelines allow Hispanic persons to be assigned to racial categories and enable multiracial persons to select multiple categories that more accurately reflect their racial backgrounds. Unlike the federal reporting guidelines, the College Board Table 1 Demographic Summary of SAT Test Takers Characteristic Virginia Beach Virginia Nation Total of Test Takers 3,323 61,655 1,664,479 Ethnicity American Indian or Alaska Native 1% 1% 1% Asian, Asian American, or Pacific Islander 9% 9% 11% Black or African American 23% 21% 13% Hispanic 6% 6% 16% White 55% 58% 51% Other 4% 4% 4% No Response 1% 2% 3% Gender Male 45% 47% 47% Female 55% 53% 53% Highest Level Parental Education No High School Diploma 2% 2% 5% High School Diploma 28% 25% 26% Associate s Degree 10% 8% 7% Bachelor s Degree 32% 31% 27% Graduate Degree 18% 26% 22% No Response 10% 8% 12% 7 Family Income Less than $40,000 10% 11% 14% $40,000 to less than $80,000 14% 12% 12% $80,000 to less than $120,000 12% 11% 9% $120,000 and above 8% 13% 10% No Response 56% 54% 55% Year SAT Test Last Taken Senior 73% 73% 68% Junior 27% 26% 32% Sophomore 0.1% 0.1% 0.3% Freshman 0% < 0.1% < 0.1% Sources: 2012 College-Bound Seniors District Profile Report (Tables 3, 8, 9, 10, 11), 2012 College-Bound Seniors State Profile Report (Tables 3, 9, 10, 11, 12), 2012 College-Bound Seniors Total Group Profile Report (Tables 3, 8, 9, 10, 11). 7 Virginia Department of Education, Race and Ethnicity Data Reporting Frequently Asked Questions, < info_management/data_collection/student_record_collection/race_ethnicity/race_ethnicity_faq.shtml>, accessed on October 4,

4 does not make provisions for SAT test takers to describe themselves in more than one ethnic category. Another difference is that the College Board has three categories that Hispanic students may choose from: Mexican or Mexican American, Puerto Rican, and Other Hispanic, Latino, or Latin American. In Table 1 the totals for these three groups were combined into a single Hispanic category. Concerning the gender of SAT test takers from the class of , more females than males took the SAT across the division, the state, and the nation. Compared with the nation, a higher percentage of seniors in Virginia Beach and Virginia reported that their parents highest level of education was a bachelor s degree. However, there was a smaller percentage of VBCPS seniors whose parents had earned a graduate degree than for seniors across the state and the nation. For the division and the state, nearly three fourths of students who graduated during took the SAT for the last time or only time while they were seniors. Nationally, just over two-thirds of the graduates were administered the SAT during their senior year. The other third took the test most recently while they were juniors. The percentage of freshmen and sophomore test takers at the division, state, and national levels who did not retake the SAT as juniors or seniors was minuscule. COMPARISONS WITH OTHER LOCAL SCHOOL DIVISIONS The mean SAT scores for seniors from Virginia Beach were compared with the mean scores of seniors who graduated during the and school years from other school divisions in the Hampton Roads area. The other school divisions used for these comparisons were Chesapeake Public Schools, Hampton City Schools, Newport News Public Schools, Norfolk Public Schools, Portsmouth Public Schools, and Suffolk Public Schools. Critical Reading Table 2 shows the mean critical reading score for each of the seven Hampton Roads school divisions. Although the mean critical reading score for Virginia Beach decreased by two points from the previous year, the VBCPS mean was the highest among the area school divisions. The mean critical reading scores for six school divisions dropped from to ; only Newport News Public Schools saw an increase in critical reading from the previous year. Table 2 SAT Critical Reading s for Hampton Roads School Divisions School Division Critical Reading Critical Reading Change from Previous Year Virginia Beach City Public Schools Chesapeake Public Schools Hampton City Schools Newport News City Public Schools Norfolk Public Schools Portsmouth Public Schools Suffolk Public Schools Sources: College Board, Virginia Public Schools, Summary by District: SAT, SAT Subject Tests TM, AP, PSAT/NMSQT for each school year. Mathematics s As shown in Table 3 on the next page, Virginia Beach seniors had an increase of five points from the previous year in the mean mathematics score. The VBCPS mean exceeded the mean mathematics scores of every other local school division by a range of 9 to 81 points. Besides Virginia Beach, three other school divisions Newport News, Portsmouth, and Suffolk had SAT mean math score increases. 4

5 Table 3 SAT Mathematics s for Hampton Roads School Divisions School Division Change from Math Math Previous Year Virginia Beach City Public Schools Chesapeake Public Schools Hampton City Schools Newport News City Public Schools Norfolk Public Schools no change Portsmouth Public Schools Suffolk Public Schools Sources: College Board, Virginia Public Schools, Summary by District: SAT, SAT Subject Tests TM, AP, PSAT/NMSQT for each school year. Writing s Virginia Beach also had the highest mean SAT writing score in the area, as seen below in Table 4. The VBCPS mean writing score of 482 did not change from the to the school year and was six points higher than the next highest mean score. The mean writing scores for Newport News Public Schools and Portsmouth Public Schools both increased by two points from the previous year. Table 4 SAT Writing s for Hampton Roads School Divisions School Division Change from Writing Writing Previous Year Virginia Beach City Public Schools no change Chesapeake Public Schools Hampton City Schools Newport News City Public Schools Norfolk Public Schools no change Portsmouth Public Schools Suffolk Public Schools Sources: College Board, Virginia Public Schools, Summary by District: SAT, SAT Subject Tests TM, AP, PSAT/NMSQT for each school year. SAT TEST RESULTS WITHIN SCORE RANGES Performance on the SAT can also be analyzed by looking at the score distributions of students. The range for each SAT section is 600 points, with a minimum of 200 to a perfect score of 800. The three tables that follow show a comparison of the percentages of seniors at the division, state, and national levels who scored within each of the six 100-point bands (i.e., , , , , , ) in the critical reading, mathematics, and writing sections. Critical Reading s Table 5 shows that the percentage of VBCPS seniors who received scores in the highest range (i.e., ) on the SAT critical reading section was 2.5 and 1.9 percentage points lower than the percentage of students at this range across the state and the nation, respectively. Approximately one-third of the Virginia Beach seniors scored in each of the two middle ranges (i.e., and ), which was a greater proportion than of students in the middle ranges at the state and national levels. The percentage of VBCPS seniors in the lowest range (i.e., ) was slightly over one percent. At the state level, the percentage of students in the low scoring range was just under two percent. Nationally, over three percent of SAT test takers scored between 200 and 299 on the critical reading section. 5

6 Table 5 Percent of Students Scoring Within Ranges: SAT Critical Reading Section Group Virginia Beach Virginia Nation Sources: 2012 College-Bound Seniors District Profile Report (Table 6), 2012 College-Bound Seniors State Profile Report (Table 6), 2012 College-Bound Seniors Total Group Profile Report (Table 5). Mathematics s On the SAT mathematics section, the Virginia Beach percentages in the middle ranges were similar to the VBCPS percentages of the middle ranges for the critical reading section. Approximately one third of the Virginia Beach seniors fell within the range and one third were in the range. The percentages of VBCPS seniors at the two highest ranges (i.e., and ) and two lowest ranges (i.e., and ) were smaller than the percentages of students in these ranges at the state and national levels. Writing s Table 6 Percent of Students Scoring Within Ranges: SAT Mathematics Section Group Virginia Beach Virginia Nation Sources: 2012 College-Bound Seniors District Profile Report (Table 6), 2012 College-Bound Seniors State Profile Report (Table 6), 2012 College-Bound Seniors Total Group Profile Report (Table 5). The data in Table 7 show smaller percentages of Virginia Beach seniors in the highest (i.e., ) and lowest ranges (i.e., ) on the SAT writing section compared to the state and the nation. This was a recurrent trend for the score ranges on all three sections of the SAT. Writing appears to be the most challenging SAT section for students at the division, state, and national levels, as reflected by the higher percentages of students in the lower half of the ranges (i.e., , , and ). The proportion of VBCPS seniors who scored between 200 and 499 was 58.5 percent, while the percentage for the state was 52.4 and the national percentage was Table 7 Percent of Students Scoring Within Ranges: SAT Writing Section Group Virginia Beach Virginia Nation Sources: 2012 College-Bound Seniors District Profile Report (Table 6), 2012 College-Bound Seniors State Profile Report (Table 6), 2012 College-Bound Seniors Total Group Profile Report (Table 5). SAT PARTICIPATION RATES The number of Virginia Beach graduating seniors who took the SAT increased for the third year in a row for the school year. The greater percentages in both and can be attributed in part to the College Board s policy of using annual full cohort totals as opposed to limiting the 6

7 count to the each school year s March cohort, which was the College Board s policy prior to For the VBCPS senior class of , there was a two percent increase in SAT participation from the previous year. The Virginia Beach participation rates are calculated by dividing the number of SAT test takers by the number of students who received a standard, advanced, special, International Baccalaureate, or modified standard diploma during the school year. Due to the different means of compiling racial and ethnicity data by the College Board and the Virginia Department of Education, the participation rates for racial/ethnic groups are not included in this report. Table 8 and Percent of Virginia Beach Senior SAT Test Takers Year ,011 2,685 2,967 3,232 3,323 Percent 60% 54% 58% 64% 66% Sources: College-Bound Seniors District Profile Reports (Table 1) and VBCPS Report of Combined Term Graduates for each school year. SAT SCORES BY RACIAL/ETHNIC GROUP Table 9 contains the mean SAT scores for the three largest racial/ethnic groups in Virginia Beach. The mean mathematics scores for all three groups in the VBCPS class of increased by at least five points from the previous year. The mean critical reading score also increased by five points for African American test takers in Virginia Beach. The mean critical reading scores decreased by eight points and two points for the Asian/Asian American/Pacific Islander group and the White group, respectively. There was a slight increase in the mean writing score for the African American and Asian/Asian American/Pacific Islander groups, while the mean writing score for White students did not change from to The differences in mean scores from the previous school year for the three racial/ethnic groups were minimal at the national level, with one-point increases or decreases for each group in at least one SAT section. The only notable changes at the state level were for the Asian/Asian American/Pacific Islander group in critical reading (two-point increase) and writing (five-point increase) and for the White group in mathematics (four-point increase). Table 9 SAT Performance by Race/Ethnicity Race/ Ethnicity Asian, Asian American, or Pacific Islander Black or African American Group Virginia Beach Reading Math Writing Reading Math Writing Reading Math Writing Reading Math Writing Reading Math Writing Virginia Nation Virginia Beach Virginia Nation Virginia Beach White Virginia Nation Sources: College-Bound Seniors District Profile Report (Table 8), College-Bound Seniors State Profile Report (Table 9), College-Bound Seniors Total Group Profile Report (Table 8) for each school year. 7

8 The performance gaps between the mean scores of the two largest racial/ethnic groups in Virginia Beach are shown in Table 10. The data are derived from the SAT results of African American and White seniors in the VBCPS classes of through The gap between the mean critical reading scores of the two groups for the most recent graduating class decreased substantially due primarily to a strong performance by African American seniors. There have been no major changes in the mathematics gap over the past few years, and the writing gap had a slight decrease from the previous year. Table 10 Gap in s Between VBCPS African American and White Students Section Critical Reading Mathematics Writing Sources: College-Bound Seniors District Profile Reports (Table 8) for each school year PSAT EXPERIENCE AND SAT SCORES Many high school students take the Preliminary SAT/National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (PSAT/NMSQT ) to prepare for the SAT. Nearly 87 percent of the Virginia Beach SAT test takers in the senior class of reported that they took the PSAT/NMSQT at some point during high school. The VBCPS percentage was much greater than the percentage of seniors in Virginia (77.7%) and the nation (68.9%) who reported taking the PSAT/NMSQT. This difference can be attributed to the fact that Virginia Beach provides funding for all students in grades 10 and 11 to take the PSAT/NMSQT. 8 The data in Table 11 suggest that students who take the PSAT/NMSQT early and more than once have higher SAT scores than students who wait until their junior year to take the test or take it only once during high school. The VBCPS seniors with multiple experiences on the PSAT/NMSQT comprised over 56 percent of the SAT test takers in the class of , and had mean scores of 500 or better on all three sections of the SAT. Although PSAT/NMSQT experience can contribute to higher SAT scores, this factor alone does not explain the differences in SAT scores between individuals or groups. Table 11 PSAT/NMSQT Experience and SAT s High School Year PSAT/NMSQT Taken Percent Critical Reading Mathematics Writing As a Junior and Sophomore or Younger 56.4% As a Sophomore or Younger 16.1% As a Junior 14.3% Did Not Take the PSAT 6.8% No Response 6.5% Source: 2012 College-Bound Seniors District Profile Report (Table 11). SAT TEST RESULTS BY HIGH SCHOOL Every year the College Board reminds recipients of the College-Bound Seniors reports that the population of students who take the SAT is self-selected. In other words, not all students in a given graduating class take the SAT. Therefore, using aggregate SAT scores to compare or evaluate teachers, schools, districts, states or other educational units is not valid, and the College Board strongly discourages 8 Rodney J. Burnsworth and Alveta G. Mitchell, PSAT Testing - Wednesday, October 17, 2012, memo, September 6,

9 such uses. 9 Comparisons between mean SAT scores of VBCPS high schools should be made with caution. For example, a number of students at Ocean Lakes and Princess Anne are enrolled in advanced academic programs that are available only to students who apply and are accepted in these programs. The tables in the following three sections each include a five-year summary of the number of students tested and the mean SAT scores for each VBCPS high school, the division, the state, and the nation. In addition, the mean scores for public school students in Virginia and the nation are given. With only one exception during the past five years the state math score all mean scores were lower for public school students than for the entire group of SAT test takers at both the state and national levels. Critical Reading s As seen in Table 12, the mean critical reading score for seniors in the class of 2012 decreased by two points from the previous year for Virginia Beach and the state. The national mean critical reading score went down by one point. The VBCPS reading mean score of 499 exceeded the national mean for the fourth year in a row but remained 11 points below the state mean of 510. There were four high schools with increases in their mean reading scores from the previous school year: First Colonial (+15), Landstown (+6), Tallwood (+6), and Princess Anne (+4). The mean scores of six high schools Cox, First Colonial, Kellam, Kempsville, Ocean Lakes, and Princess Anne were higher than the national mean critical reading score. Four of these schools Cox, First Colonial, Ocean Lakes, and Princess Anne recorded mean scores that were higher than the state mean reading score. School Table 12 Summary of SAT Critical Reading s Bayside Cox First Colonial Green Run Kellam Kempsville Landstown Ocean Lakes Princess Anne Salem Tallwood Virginia Beach 10 3, , , , , Virginia 59, , , , , Nation 1,518, ,530, ,547, ,647, ,664, Virginia Public 50, , , , , Nation Public 1,167, ,093, ,114, ,267, ,284, Sources: College-Bound Seniors High School Profile Reports (Table 1), College-Bound Seniors District Profile Report (Table 1), College-Bound Seniors State Profile Report (Tables 1 and 7), College-Bound Seniors Total Group Profile Report (Tables 1 and 6) for each school year.. 9 College Board, 2012 College-Bound Seniors District Profile Report. 10 SAT data for students who attended Renaissance Academy are included in the overall figures for Virginia Beach but are not listed separately because of the small number of test takers at this school. 9

10 Mathematics s As shown in Table 13, the mean SAT mathematics score for Virginia Beach graduates was five points higher than the mean score of their peers in the VBCPS class of The mean math score for the state increased by three points to 512 and the national mean stayed the same at 514. The Virginia Beach mean of 509 was three points lower than the state mean and five points lower than the mean for the nation. All but two VBCPS high schools experienced improved mean mathematics scores from the previous year. The schools with the largest gains in math were First Colonial High School (+15), Salem High School (+10), and Landstown High School (+9). Four Virginia Beach high schools had mean SAT mathematics scores that exceeded both the state and national mean mathematics scores: Cox, First Colonial, Ocean Lakes, and Princess Anne. Table 13 Summary of SAT Mathematics s School Bayside Cox First Colonial Green Run Kellam Kempsville Landstown Ocean Lakes Princess Anne Salem Tallwood Virginia Beach 11 3, , , , , Virginia 59, , , , , Nation 1,518, ,530, ,547, ,647, ,664, Virginia Public 50, , , , , Nation Public 1,167, ,093, ,114, ,267, ,284, Sources: 2011 College-Bound Seniors High School Profile Reports (Table 1), 2011 College-Bound Seniors District Profile Report (Table 1), 2011 College-Bound Seniors State Profile Report (Table 1), 2011 College-Bound Seniors Total Group Profile Report (Table 1). Writing s For the school year, the mean writing scores for Virginia Beach and the state remained constant from the previous year at 482 and 495, respectively. The national mean writing score went down by one point to 488. With very few mean scores above 500 for any of the groups at the school, division, state, or national levels, the writing section is considered to be the most challenging section on the SAT. The mean writing scores for six VBCPS schools increased from the to the school year. The high schools with gains were Bayside (+14), First Colonial (+11), Landstown (+7), 11 SAT data for students who attended Renaissance Academy are included in the overall figures for Virginia Beach but are not listed separately because of the small number of test takers at this school. 10

11 Tallwood (+6), Salem (+5), and Princess Anne (+3). The same four Virginia Beach high schools that recorded higher mean scores than the state and the nation in critical reading and mathematics also had mean writing scores that surpassed the mean writing scores at the state and the national levels. These schools were Cox High School, First Colonial High School, Ocean Lakes High School, and Princess Anne High School. School Table 14 Summary of SAT Writing s Bayside Cox First Colonial Green Run Kellam Kempsville Landstown Ocean Lakes Princess Anne Salem Tallwood Virginia Beach 12 3, , , , , Virginia 59, , , , , Nation 1,518, ,530, ,547, ,647, ,664, Virginia Public 50, , , , , Nation Public 1,167, ,093, ,114, ,267, ,284, Sources: 2011 College-Bound Seniors High School Profile Reports (Table 1), 2011 College-Bound Seniors District Profile Report (Table 1), 2011 College-Bound Seniors State Profile Report (Table 1), 2011 College-Bound Seniors Total Group Profile Report (Table 1). 12 SAT data for students who attended Renaissance Academy are included in the overall figures for Virginia Beach but are not listed separately because of the small number of test takers at this school. 11