The WCPSS average total score was a 1568, which is 93 points higher than the North Carolina average and 68 points higher than the national average.
“The concrete comparison we can make is this: we have the highest SAT participation rate and scores among large North Carolina districts,” said Superintendent Tony Tata on wcpss.net. “That’s a great combination, and it speaks to the skill of our college-bound and career-ready seniors and the teachers who prepared them for success.”
For critical reading, Wake County’s average was a 521. North Carolina’s average was 493 and the national average was 497.
Wake County seniors scored an average of 544 on math, whereas North Carolina’s average was 508 and the national average was 514.
The average writing score for Wake County’s seniors was 503, compared to 474 and 489 for North Carolina’s average and the national average, respectively.
The seniors from the class of 2010 had an average SAT score (without the writing, subtract 800 from the 2400 total points available) of 1125.
The College Board reports that 6,577 WCPSS seniors took the exam, which is a participation rate of 75.9 percent of enrolled students. Leesville had 78% of its eligible students take the test in 2010.
This participation rate was higher than the North Carolina participation rate of 67 percent and the national participation rate of 50 percent.
The national average for all SAT scores hit an all time low with the senior class of 2011–1500 combined.
The College Board connects the decline in scores to the increasing numbers of diversity and participation of test-takers.
According to a College Board press release, there was a 44-percent rise in minority students this year, making this the most diverse class of SAT test-takers on record. The amount of first generation university go-ers is up 36 percent, and the amount of test takers who’s first language is not English also rose 27 percent.
Reaching students with increasingly diverse economic backgrounds is sure to have affects on the national SAT score.
“As we reach more students who have less resources, scores will tend to drop,” Wayne Camara, College Board Vice President of Research and Development, said in a phone interview with the L.A. Times.
Wake County’s scores, however, rose significantly above this national average as well as the state average.
Wake County continues to demonstrate its phenomenal school system. We have the hard work and determination of our dedicated teachers as well as students to thank for these outstanding SAT scores.
Keep up the exceptional work!
