Latest news with #standardizedtests
Fox News
3 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Illinois changes benchmarks that proved proficiency in math, English on standardized tests
Print Close By Joshua Nelson Published August 13, 2025 Illinois education officials on Wednesday approved changes to their cut scores — the benchmarks used to determine proficiency — used for state standardized tests. "Prior performance levels mislabeled many students in elementary and high school, often indicating that students were less academically successful and prepared for college than they actually were. The new, unified levels correct long-standing misalignment between Illinois' state assessments and other real college and career readiness expectations," the Illinois State Board of Education announced on Wednesday. The Board maintained that its learning standards and assessments have not changed. The new policy changes the score that proves proficiency in core subjects on each state assessment in order to "align it to college and career readiness expectations." During the school board meeting, Illinois State Superintendent Tony Sanders said the move is not a lowering of standards, but rather an adjustment that appropriately fits with the reality of student outcome patterns. ILLINOIS PARENTS WARY OF SCHOOL MENTAL HEALTH SCREENING LAW, POTENTIAL FOR 'OVERREACH' The decision stems from the Board's 18-month-long process of consulting with over 100 educators and other local higher education stakeholders to establish new proficiency benchmarks. The Board said that such benchmarks are based on analysis of "college and university course placement data and student probabilities of passing college coursework" and success data from Illinois colleges and universities. The Illinois Assessment of Readiness decreased its cut scores, while increasing the cut scores for the Illinois Science Assessment. According to ChalkBeat, data shared in a presentation on Tuesday indicates that more students will be labeled as "proficient" than in the previous year. "Under the new cut scores, 53% of students would be considered proficient in English language arts, up from 41% last year; 38% would be proficient in math, up from 28% last year; and 45% would be in science, down from last year," ChalkBeat reported. SAN FRANCISCO SCHOOL DISTRICT DITCHES PROPOSED 'GRADING FOR EQUITY' STRATEGY AFTER BACKLASH FROM COMMUNITY "Illinois' students are nationally recognized for their academic achievements, but our proficiency rates have not reflected that reality," Sanders said in a statement released by the board. Sanders added that the state's proficiency benchmarks mislabeled students, inhibiting qualified students from accessing opportunities for accelerations and giving students the impression that they were not ready for college when they actually were. "Illinois' new performance levels bring much-needed alignment between grade levels, subjects, and actual college and career readiness expectations," Sanders said. Representative Mary Beth Canty, D-Arlington Heights, claimed that the new benchmarks will benefit rural students, low-income students and students of color. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP "These common-sense adjustments will align state testing benchmarks with college expectations and will particularly benefit rural students, low-income students, and students of color whose true capabilities and academic successes have not been reflected in our state's proficiency rates or in their own test results," Canty said. "I believe better data leads to better outcomes for all students. The Accelerated Placement Act can only achieve its goal of expanding access to advanced coursework and college preparation for all qualified students if we are using accurate measures of student achievement." Print Close URL
CBS News
3 days ago
- General
- CBS News
Illinois approves plan to lower proficiency scores for standardized tests
It will soon be easier for Illinois students to pass state tests. On Wednesday, the Illinois State Board of Education approved a plan to lower proficiency scores for standardized tests. The change means a significantly higher number of students will be considered "proficient" in subjects like reading and math. Currently, a third grader must score 750 out of 850 on the math assessment to be deemed proficient, while the new standard will drop the score to meet that standard to 72, Chalkbeat Chicago reported. Chalkbeat reported the new cut scores would place 53% of students in the proficient category for English language arts, and 38% for math — up from 41% and 28%, respectively. The changed stand State education officials said Illinois students perform above the national average. But the old standards led some students to think they were not ready for college when they were.
New York Times
07-08-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Trump's Deals With Top Colleges May Give Rich Applicants a Bigger Edge
In recent deals with Columbia and Brown, the Trump administration demanded that they publicly share anonymized data about all applicants, including their standardized test scores, grade point averages and race. Linda McMahon, the education secretary, said the agreements with the two Ivy League colleges would ensure that 'aspiring students will be judged solely on their merits, not their race or sex.' But another factor strongly influences students' chances of being admitted to an elite college: their parents' income. Rich parents generally spend more time and money on children's education throughout their youth, so by the time they apply to college, they tend to have higher test scores and other qualifications elite colleges seek. In effect, the administration's efforts to prioritize standardized tests and G.P.A.s could make wealth even more influential in admissions at top-tier colleges across the country. 'This move could also further entrench advantages for wealthy applicants rather than reduce bias,' especially if colleges feel political pressure to admit only applicants with the highest test scores and grades, said Adam Nguyen, founder of Ivy Link, which provides college admissions advice to families with students as young as fifth grade and charges up to $750,000 for the services. 'Equally talented low-income or even mid-income students rarely have access to that level of strategic guidance,' he said. 'Any selective admissions process that ignores income, privilege and structural access while targeting race‑based efforts to increase diversity isn't leveling the playing field. It's cementing it.' Source: Opportunity Insights and Chetty, Deming, Friedman (2023) Data is from at least three of the dozen top colleges where the researchers had access to detailed admissions records. Percent of SAT test takers who scored 1300 or higher, by income group 38% 30% 20% 10% 2.4% Bottom 20% 20th– 40th 40th– 60th 60th– 80th Top 20% Top 1% Top 0.1% → Parents' income rank → POORER RICHER Percent of SAT test takers who scored 1300 or higher, by income group 38% 30% 20% 10% 2.4% Bottom 20% 20th– 40th 40th– 60th 60th– 80th Top 20% Top 1% Top 0.1% → → POORER Parents' income rank RICHER Source: Opportunity Insights and Chetty, Deming, Friedman (2023). Based on SAT and ACT scores from students who were on track to graduate high school in 2011, 2013 or 2015 and their parents' tax records. (ACT scores were converted into equivalent SAT scores.) Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
New York Times
05-08-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Columbia and Brown to Disclose Admissions and Race Data in Trump Deal
As part of the settlements struck with two Ivy League universities in recent weeks, the Trump administration will gain access to the standardized test scores and grade point averages of all applicants, including information about their race, a measure that could profoundly alter competitive college admissions. That aspect of the agreements with Columbia and Brown, which goes well beyond the information typically provided to the government, was largely overlooked amid splashier news that the universities had promised to pay tens of millions of dollars to settle claims of violations of federal anti-discrimination laws, including accusations that they had tolerated antisemitism. The release of such data has been on the wish list of conservatives who are searching for evidence that universities are dodging a 2023 Supreme Court decision barring the consideration of race in college admissions, and will probably be sought in the future from many more of them. But college officials and experts who support using factors beyond test scores worry that the government — or private groups or individuals — will use the data to file new discrimination charges against universities and threaten their federal funding. The Trump administration is using every lever it can to push elite college admissions offices toward what it regards as 'merit-based' processes that more heavily weigh grades and test scores, arguing that softer measures, such as asking applicants about their life challenges or considering where they live, may be illegal proxies for considering race. The additional scrutiny is likely to resonate in admissions offices nationwide. It could cause some universities to reconsider techniques like recruitment efforts focused on high schools whose students are predominantly people of color, or accepting students who have outstanding qualifications in some areas but subpar test scores, even if they believe such actions are legal. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Yahoo
11-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
NJ SAT scores drop for 3rd year, but participation remains high
Newly released data from the state indicates that the average SAT score in New Jersey has fallen for the third consecutive year, a trend that coincided with the statewide transition to online SAT testing for the first time during the 2023/2024 academic year. Once a cornerstone of college applications, scores from standardized tests like the SAT are increasingly viewed with less weight by colleges and universities. These institutions are now placing greater emphasis on a comprehensive evaluation of a student's achievements and extracurricular involvement throughout their high school career. Despite this shift, the latest School Performance Reports from the New Jersey Department of Education reveal that nearly 63% of high school seniors in the 2023-2024 academic year, or in prior years, still opted to take the SAT. This figure represents a slight increase compared to the preceding year. During the 2023-2024 school year, New Jersey students achieved an average math SAT score of 519 and an average reading/writing score of 530, resulting in a combined average score of approximately 1,049. This represents a decrease from the previous year's average combined score of 1,058. A perfect score on the SAT is a combined 1600, with 800 being the maximum score for each section. The data consistently shows that students attending magnet schools and specialized public high schools generally attained the highest overall SAT scores. For instance, students at High Technology High School in Monmouth County recorded an impressive average SAT score of 1,512. Here's a look at districts in Monmouth and Ocean counties: Math score: 557 Reading and writing score: 563 Combined score: 1,120 Math score: 396 Reading and writing score: 407 Combined score: 803 Math score: 581 Reading and writing score: 588 Combined score: 1,169 Math score: 581 Reading and writing score: 579 Combined score: 1,160 Math score: 556 Reading and writing score: 569 Combined score: 1,125 Math score: 542 Reading and writing score: 555 Combined score: 1,097 Math score: 567 Reading and writing score: 565 Combined score: 1,132 Math score: 594 Reading and writing score: 585 Combined score: 1,179 Math score: 550 Reading and writing score: 575 Combined score: 1,125 Math score: 602 Reading and writing score: 603 Combined score: 1,205 Math score: 469 Reading and writing score: 505 Combined score: 974 Math score: 437 Reading and writing score: 451 Combined score: 888 Math score: 574 Reading and writing score: 581 Combined score: 1,155 Math score: 534 Reading and writing score: 554 Combined score: 1,088 Math score: 569 Reading and writing score: 562 Combined score: 1,131 Math score: 478 Reading and writing score: 477 Combined score: 955 Math score: 749 Reading and writing score: 725 Combined score: 1,474 Math score: 642 Reading and writing score: 670 Combined score: 1,312 Math score: 772 Reading and writing score: 740 Combined score: 1,512 Math score: 666 Reading and writing score: 663 Combined score: 1,329 Math score: 704 Reading and writing score: 694 Combined score: 1,398 Math score: 516 Reading and writing score: 542 Combined score: 1,058 Math score: 528 Reading and writing score: 548 Combined score: 1,076 Math score: 468 Reading and writing score: 503 Combined score: 971 Math score: 517 Reading and writing score: 520 Combined score: 1,037 Math score: 608 Reading and writing score: 601 Combined score: 1,209 Math score: 524 Reading and writing score: 543 Combined score: 1,067 Math score: 547 Reading and writing score: 557 Combined score: 1,104 Math score: 500 Reading and writing score: 509 Combined score: 1,009 Math score: 520 Reading and writing score: 545 Combined score: 1,065 Math score: 507 Reading and writing score: 529 Combined score: 1,036 Math score: 500 Reading and writing score: 528 Combined score: 1,028 Math score: 526 Reading and writing score: 545 Combined score: 1,071 Math score: 530 Reading and writing score: 540 Combined score: 1,070 Math score: 523 Reading and writing score: 537 Combined score: 1,060 Math score: 455 Reading and writing score: 458 Combined score: 913 Math score: 452 Reading and writing score: 460 Combined score: 912 Math score: 512 Reading and writing score: 559 Combined score: 1,071 Math score: 555 Reading and writing score: 571 Combined score: 1,126 Math score: 515 Reading and writing score: 550 Combined score: 1,065 Math score: 539 Reading and writing score: 544 Combined score: 1,083 Math score: 539 Reading and writing score: 554 Combined score: 1,093 Math score: 535 Reading and writing score: 536 Combined score: 1,071 Math score: 541 Reading and writing score: 544 Combined score: 1,085 Math score: 506 Reading and writing score: 533 Combined score: 1,039 This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: SAT scores in New Jersey down; 2024 results for Jersey Shore
