Howard County ACT Scores Continue to Outperform State and National Results

August 28th, 2014

Performance on the ACT college readiness test among Howard County Public School System seniors continues to climb, according to results reported last week by ACT Incorporated. Scores for the HCPSS Class of 2014 in each skill area outpaced results from the prior year as well as scores for Maryland and the nation.

The ACT assesses high school students’ general educational development and their ability to complete college-level work in the four skill areas. An increasing number of HCPSS students are taking the ACT in addition to the SAT. Most colleges and universities accept scores from either assessment.

The HCPSS composite score for 2014 was 24.6, an increase over the prior year’s class average of 24.1, as well as the 2014 average of 22.6 for Maryland as a whole and the national average of 21.0. The composite score is the average of the test scores in four skill areas, rounded to the nearest whole number. The score range for each of the four skill tests is 1 to 36.

Scores in each tested skill area also increased over the prior year. The average 2014 HCPSS score in English was 24.2, which outpaced the 2013 score of 23.7, this year’s Maryland average of 22.1, and the national average of 20.3.

In math, HCPSS scored 24.8 in 2014, compared to 24.4 last year, 22.5 for Maryland, and 20.9 for the U.S. as a whole. In reading, HCPSS scored 24.7 for 2014, also outpacing the prior year’s score of 24.2, and the state and national averages of 23.0 and 21.3, respectively.

Finally, the 2014 HCPSS science score was 24.1, also outpacing the prior year score of 23.7, the Maryland average of 22.2, and the national average of 20.8.