Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, September 8, 1993 TAG: 9309080338
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LAURA WILLIAMSON STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Virginia students, on average, scored one point higher this year on the verbal section, the second year in a row that scores rose by a single point. Verbal scores had been declining in previous years. Average math scores rose by two points this year.
But students at several local school divisions continued to score poorly in comparison to the rest of the state.
Some local school administrators cautioned against comparing the test scores of one locality to another because of inconsistencies in how many students take the standardized test, which often is used in competition for scholarships.
"If you go in and compare apples to apples that's one thing," said Salem's director of student services, Lewis Romano. "But all you're comparing on the SAT is who takes it. It varies from year to year."
Because the students, not the school division, decide whether and when to take the college entrance exam, Roanoke County was reluctant to release its scores.
Average test scores depend heavily on the number of students taking the test and are sensitive to those who score at the extremes, said Joe Kyle, Roanoke County director of testing.
Roanoke County's 1993 graduating seniors scored higher than state and national averages on the verbal section of the test but slightly lower on the math portion.
In the city, test scores fell far below the state and national averages, with verbal scores 42 points under the state average of 425 and 54 points below the 469 math average in Virginia.
"We are not pleased with the mean score for Roanoke city students," Superintendent E. Wayne Harris said.
However, he said, those scores don't necessarily reflect a student's capabilities or ability to gain entrance to college. The city, he added, continues to send students to competitive universities such as Harvard, Howard, William and Mary, and the University of Virginia.
"It's an important indicator," he said. "But it's but one indicator of how well a student can do."
Harris said it's also important to remember that the averages are just that and don't reflect an individual student's performance.
"As a parent, I'm more concerned about how Jeffrey did," he said, "not how the rest of his class did."
Performance also varies among localities for socioeconomic reasons, said Paul J. Strickler, director of secondary instruction in Franklin County.
He said he was concerned about Franklin County scores - which fell lower than state and national averages in both sections - but not because of how they stacked up against localities with which they had little in common.
Better news, he said, is that average Franklin County SAT scores have gone up 27 points since last year, while the test's importance as a gateway exam to colleges appears to be going down.
The test is also about to change, a development that has increased enrollment in SAT preparation courses nationwide.
The biggest changes, which will appear on the tests for the first time next spring, include 10 "grid in" questions on the math section that require students to come up with their own answers rather than selecting from several possible answers. Students will be allowed to use calculators and will have 15 extra seconds per question.
The reading comprehension section will change its name to "critical reading" and will make up half of the verbal section of the new test. The antonym section will be eliminated and some questions will be shortened, according to the Princeton Review, which provides free copies of pamphlets detailing the changes.
Copies of the "No-Stress Guide to the New SAT" are available by calling (800) 955-5565.
\ SAT SCORES\ 1993 seniors/Mean scores\ \ Verbal Math\ Bedford County 412 440\ Botetourt County 419 457\ Franklin County 406 440\ Montgomery Co. 438 499\ Pulaski County 443 477\ Radford 453 505\ Roanoke 383 415\ Roanoke County 433 468\ Salem 407 461\ VIRGINIA 425 469\ NATION 424 478\
Memo: ***CORRECTION***