FOR MORE INFORMATION
- Dana Tofig, Georgia Department of Education: (404) 463-1487, dtofig@doe.k12.ga.us
- ACT Media Relations Office: (319) 337-1028, ken.gullette@act.org or ed.colby@act.org

AUGUST 16, 2006 – Georgia's average score on the ACT rose to an all-time high in 2006 even as the number of students taking the test increased dramatically.

"The 2006 ACT results are yet another sign that Georgia is improving student achievement across the board," Superintendent of Schools Kathy Cox said. "It demonstrates that we are doing the right things at the right time."

2006 High School Graduates from Georgia had an average composite score of 20.2 on the test, up from 20 last year. The ACT is scored on a scale from 1-36.

Georgia Students Improve in Every Area

Georgia students improved on every portion of the test, as well as in the composite score. The most significant improvement was in English, where Georgia graduating seniors scored 19.8, which is a .4 increase from 2005.

CHART 1: AVERAGE 2006 SCORE FOR GEORGIA GRADUATING SENIORS

SUBJECT	2003	2004	2005	2006
English	19.3	19.5	19.4	19.8
Math	19.7	19.9	19.8	20.1
Reading	20.1	20.3	20.3	20.5
Science	19.7	19.9	19.8	20.0
COMPOSITE	19.8	20.0	20.0	20.2

Achievement Goes Up Even as Participation Goes Up

Superintendent Cox said the gains were even more impressive considering Georgia had a 7 ½ percent jump in the number of students who took the test. In 2006, 25,064 graduating seniors took the ACT. That is up 1,740 students from 2005 and up 6,201 students since 2003.

"Conventional wisdom would dictate that when you see a dramatic increase in the number of students taking a test, you would see a drop-off in score," the Superintendent said. "But that's just not the case in Georgia – our performance goes up even as our participation goes up."

While most Georgia high school students take the SAT, the ACT has been growing in popularity for the past five years.

CHART 2: 2006 PARTICIPATION FOR ALL STUDENTS AND SUB-GROUPS

Students in Racial Sub-Groups are Improving

Superintendent Cox said she was greatly encouraged by the performance of Georgia's subgroups, all of which showed improvement this year.

"When compared to their peers across the nation, our students are performing at or above the national average," Superintendent Cox said. "That’s a testament to the hard work going on across Georgia."

She noted that Hispanic and White students showed greater improvement than the nation, while African-American and Asian-American students showed similar gains.

“We still have work to do in closing the achievement gap, but with our new curriculum and higher expectations for all of our students, I know we are on the right path,” Superintendent Cox said.

CHART 3: AVERAGE 2006 SCORE BY RACIAL SUB-GROUP
(Change from 2005 in parentheses)

	African-American	Hispanic	White	Asian-American
GEORGIA	17.2 (+.1)	19.6 (+.5)	21.9 (+.3)	22.1 (+.2)
NATION	17.1 (+.1)	18.6 (+0)	22.0 (+.1)	22.3 (+.2)

About the ACT

The ACT is a curriculum-based achievement test designed to measure the skills and knowledge taught in school and deemed important for first-year college students to possess. The ACT is made up of four separate exams in English, reading, mathematics and science. There is also an optional writing test.

For more information about the ACT, visit www.act.org.