Utah's class of 2004 is more prepared for college and outscoring the national average on the ACT college entrance test, results released today show.
But Utah must work to narrow an achievement gap between ethnic minorities and whites and, to a lesser degree, between boys and girls, and better prepare students for college, officials say.
"We're very, very pleased with our student scoring," said Christine Kearl, state associate superintendent. Still, she acknowledges: "We have some work to do."
Utah's composite score of 21.5 — compared to the national average 20.9 — represents the first scoring increase in four years, ACT reports. It is two-tenths of a point higher than last year, and one-tenth of a point higher than the two years before that.
The national score represents a one-tenth of a point increase, the first rise in seven years, ACT reports. In all, about 1.2 million graduates took the ACT, which includes tests in English, math, reading and science and is scored on a scale of 1 to 36.
Utah's increase is impressive, considering 67.5 percent of some 30,900 graduates took the test, ACT chief executive officer Richard L. Ferguson said in a prepared statement.
The West posts a 30.8 percent test rate. The national test rate is 39.6 percent.
States with fewer test-takers likely include the academic cream of the crop, Kearl said.
Utah's high numbers of test takers probably include some students who won't go to college.
As such, some students may not have been taking hefty class loads to prepare for a higher education. And that makes a difference in test performance — by nearly 2 points, ACT data show.
Utah students taking a "core" class load — at least four years of English and three years each of algebra or more advanced math, science and social studies — averaged a 22.4 composite. Students taking lighter classes averaged a 20.7 composite.
While Utah's test takers appear more prepared for college, it doesn't mean everything is up to par.
Officials project 72 percent of Utah's 12th-grade test takers are college-ready in English composition — 4 percentage points higher than the national average.
But just 42 percent (vs. 40 percent nationally) and 29 percent (vs. 26 percent nationally) of Utah seniors are prepared for college algebra and biology, respectively.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics shows many of the fastest-growing occupations require strong math and science skills, ACT reports.
ACT research also suggests students who aren't college-ready contribute to weakened college retention and graduation rates — an issue Utah officials are trying to address.
"We've got some work to do in both areas in college algebra and biology . . . especially biology. That's just unacceptable," Kearl said.
Utah education leaders are working to raise the academic bar in secondary schools, both through school reform legislation and "Performance Plus," pitched by the State Board of Education.
The efforts stem from school leaders' desire to add meaning to the senior year, when many students tend to coast, and employers' complaints that high school graduates lack basic math and writing skills.
Schools also are working to get help to kids who need it. The ACT, like statewide tests for years, indicate an achievement gap between genders and between whites and ethnic minorities.
Utah Caucasians post a 21.7 average composite score. Students identifying themselves as Asian-American or Pacific Islander netted a 20.5; Mexican-American/Chicanos, a 19.0; Puerto Rican/Hispanics, an 18.6; blacks an 18.1; and American Indian/Alaska natives, a 17.4.
Achievement gaps by gender are less pronounced. Boys outperform girls with a 21.7 vs. a 21.3 composite score, respectively. They also outperform girls in math and science by 1.4 points and 1.3 points, respectively. But girls edge boys in English by 0.8 points and reading by 0.3 points.
"It's good information for us," Kearl said.
E-mail: jtcook@desnews.com