Not every state gives the ACT to all of its high school students. Alabama, Arizona, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nevada, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Wyoming all tested 100%. Montana tested 97%, while Arkansas and Nebraska tested 95% and Wisconsin hit 94%. Other than those states, I’m reluctant to compare ratings that are based on the ACT.
So let’s look at the why – Montana, testing 97% of the students, shows an average composite of 19.5. Massachusetts, testing just 7% of its students shows an average composite score of 26.1. If only the top college bound students take the test, there will be, and is a difference. Comparisons should be fairly valid between the 13 states I mentioned – but for Massachusetts, where only 7% of the students take the ACT, or California where the number is 3%, forget about it. The average California score is even higher than Massachusetts – but not representative.
So what did it take for Lincoln (not a) County High School to move from the top of the bottom third to the bottom of the top third in one year? The first thing to realize is that ACT scores have a skewed curve – the bottom 2% goes from 0 to 10 points, while the top 2% of scores range from 33 to 36. The score for the top of the bottom third is about 15, while the score at the bottom of the top third is about 21.
Now, lets look at a class of 61 students. Statistics suggest the top student will have an IQ score of 132, and the bottom student will score 68. (Yes, the ACT tends to test the same G factor that the Stanford-Binet did.) The stats show us that the 132 score is in the top 2.7%, so we might expect an ACT of 32, maybe 33. On the other hand, the kid with the IQ of 68 is likely to score 10. Since the highest score possible is 36, and the lowest is 1, we can see how our top student’s 32, combined with the poor score of 10, averages a composite of 21 – amazing how closely general statistics mirror reality. Of course, with Montana testing 97% of its high school students, that kid with the room temperature IQ may not have taken the test at all. If we leave his 10 points out, that one brightest kid contributes 11 extra points toward raising the class performance.
We don’t think about it, but generally the high school senior class is larger than the graduating class. I can dig out my yearbook and see the photographs of at least one classmate who went through four years of high school with me but didn’t walk across the stage.
Okay – those numbers give us a bit of understanding how LCHS could go from the bottom third to the top third in one year – the difference between 15 and 21 is only six points. I recall how Pete Scott noticed that anyone in the top ten from the class of 67 would have qualified as valedictorian in the class of 66. (It does make our valedictorian’s accomplishment much more impressive) Schools didn’t get ranked by college placement tests back then – but the difference between a class that has ten students matching or surpassing the top scorer in another class – getting 50 or 60 more points on the composite – can kick the school up from the bottom third to the top without reflecting anything on the school or the teaching.
Bozeman’s consistent position at the top shows that it’s a large school – thereby less subject to shifts in the student body – and that there is a selection process for the students – what they called ‘university kids’ where Sam went to school. Gallatin High is almost as large, and part of the Bozeman district. Students whose parents have a pair of doctorates generally have an advantage over students who are first generation college students – and it shows at all levels, including high school.
The interesting thing is the tiny schools that show up in the top ten once. Lavina. Froid. Say there are 40 kids in the high school, or even as few as 20. If there are 20, five juniors will be taking the ACT. Say four are good students – getting 23 composite scores, and the fifth scores 35 points. All of a sudden, you have a school with an average composite of 25+ . . . in the top 15%. Four kind of sharp kids and one who is downright brilliant make the whole little school look good.
Another way to look good is just to get a few training tests and go through them all – This story is about the SAT, not the ACT – but Senator Charles Schumer (Dem, NY) got a perfect 1600 SAT score. There is no doubt the man is bright – but the only private job on his resume was 3 high school years working for Stanley Kaplan – who, at that time, ran a small test preparation firm. You may want to check at https://www.kaptest.com/ and see for yourself if Chuck might have had a bit of an advantage.
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