Montana Student SAT Scores Continue to Beat National Average

State Superintendent Linda McCulloch announced today that Montana high school graduates continue to score significantly higher than the national average on the annual SAT college entrance exam.

Montana students averaged 541 in reading, 548 in math, and 523 in writing. These numbers compare to lower national averages of 502 in reading, 515 in math, and 494 in writing.

"Montana students rank #1 when compared to other states with an equal or higher number of test-takers," said Superintendent Linda McCulloch. "These impressive results show Montana schools are improving despite this year’s AYP Report, which is required under the federal No Child Left Behind Act."

The College Board reports that 2,648 (24%) of Montana’s 2008 high school graduates took this year’s SAT exam. It should be noted that significantly fewer Montana students take the SAT exam compared to the ACT exam.

"Montana students continue to raise the bar for subsequent graduating classes. The 2008 high school graduates scored 3 points higher in reading and 5 points higher in math than the 2007 graduating class," said Superintendent McCulloch. "I’m proud to report that 28% of those students plan on becoming first-generation college graduates."

The percentage of male to female test-takers is similar to last year. In 2008, 45% of test-takers were male and 55% of test-takers were female.

"The 2008 SAT results both in Montana and nationally indicate that a ‘gender gap’ still persists in math performance scores. While Montana boys and girls had similar scores in reading, the boys scored an average of 33 points higher on the math portion than the girls," said Superintendent McCulloch.

In Montana, 20% (520) of this year’s test-takers were non-public school students. That’s up from 14% in 2007. The other 80% were public-school students.

"An interesting aspect of the SAT test results is how well our public school students performed. Those Montana seniors attending public schools scored 552 in math compared to the Montana state average of 548. Those same students scored 544 in reading compared to the state average of 541," said Superintendent McCulloch. "Montana seniors attending public schools also scored an average 3 points higher in writing than the state average."

Today’s SAT results come on the heels of last week’s ACT test scores. Montana students also scored significantly higher than the national ACT composite score.

"Our students have become increasingly aware of the importance of higher edcation and college preparatory courses," said Superintendent Linda McCulloch. "Their hard work and dedication speaks well for the quality education in Montana."