Tennessee’s ACT Scores Stagnant, But More Students Taking Test

Tennessee’s average score on the ACT college entrance exam held steady over the last year, even as the national average dropped slightly.

The state’s score has been 20.7 for three years now, but still trails the nation by 4/10 of a point.

Alan Richard, a spokesman for the Southern Regional Education Board, says things could be worse. Richard says it’s worth noting the number of students taking the test in Tennessee increased, particularly among minority groups.

“We’re disappointed that the scores aren’t moving upward. But it’s good news that many more kids are taking the test, and that Tennessee’s average scores did not go down like the national scores did.”

Richard says the number of Hispanic students taking the ACT here has nearly doubled since 2004.

Amanda Maynord with the Department of Education says while it’s encouraging that more students are taking the test, the state wants to improve scores.

“We are hopeful that with implementation of new standards and curriculum, our new graduation standards, our new K-8 curriculum, that we can get those numbers up.”

Maynord noted the Tennessee Diploma Project in particular aims to better prepare students for college, and may drive ACT scores up within the next few years.