Test results show Idaho student SAT scores dropped

BOISE – Idaho students showed gains in English and math on standardized tests, but 11th graders did worse than last year on the SAT college entrance exam.

The Idaho State Department of Education released preliminary statewide results last week. Data shows how students performed on tests they took this spring. Preliminary results show overall proficiency was 43.3 percent in math, up from 41.9 percent last year. English proficiency was 53.7 percent, up from 52 percent.

“Idaho educators are working hard to align instruction to rigorous standards and equip students to meet the expectations of the new assessments, and that effort takes time to calibrate,” Superintendent of Public Instruction Sherri Ybarra said in a statement. “So in this fourth year it is good news to see improvements in student performance across the board.”

Results are available online by school district for the SAT. District-level results for the Idaho Standards Achievement Test won’t be available until August.

Students in third through eighth-grades, and 10th grade, finished ISAT testing in May and individual score reports will be distributed by local school districts.

In April, nearly 20,000 Idaho 11th graders took the SAT. It’s a high school graduation requirement for students to take a college entrance exam and Idaho covers the cost of the SAT test.