Delaware sees growth in the number of students taking the SAT

More high school students in Delaware are taking the SAT since the state started providing the exam at public schools during the regular school day.

According to the latest data from College Board, Delaware’s Class of 2014 had 8,122 who took the test, most of whom took the exam as juniors.

Less than 3,200 students took the test prior to the universal test implementation in 2011.

The state also saw a 50 percent increase in female students taking the exam.

“Enabling students to take the exam during a regular school day at their own high school helps students who may otherwise be hindered by other factors,” said Mark Murphy secretary of the Delaware Department of Education. “Thousands of additional Delaware students are taking the SAT because of this program. We are eliminating barriers and encouraging a college-ready culture in every school for every student.”

The state began providing the Universal SAT to public school students in 2011, in an effort to increase college readiness among students.

While more students are taking the test, the results show many Delaware students have some work to do before they go off to college.

The mean scores for both public and private students in the Class of 2014 are; Critical Reading 497, Mathematics 513 and Writing 487.

Students who were accepted into a college like the University of Delaware, for example, scored 520-630 in Critical Reading, 540-650 in Math and 520-630 in Writing, according to UD’s 2013 admission data.

The Delaware Department of Education noted that while state’s average might have gone down, some school districts reported increases in their mean scores.

Dickinson High School in the Red Clay district saw a mean total score increase of 101 points from 2012 to 2014 with an almost 58 percent increase in participation, while Cape Henlopen High School in the Cape Henlopen district saw a mean total score increase of 27 points while seeing a 19 percent increase in participation.