City SAT scores up, but still low
By AARON NICODEMUS, Standard-Times staff writer
NEW BEDFORD -- Seniors at New Bedford High School scored slightly better on the Scholastic Aptitude Test last year than seniors from the class of 2001, but still far below state and national average scores.
According to a report from The College Board, which administers the SAT, the school's class of 2002 earned an average score of 461 on the verbal portion and 464 on math, for a total score of 925. That was six points better than seniors in the class of 2001, who scored a combined 919 -- the lowest average score by the school's seniors since 1996. The highest recent average score was earned by seniors from the class of 2000, with a 940, while the class of 1993 scored a combined 811.
In terms of scoring on the SATs, a combined score of 400 is the lowest a student can earn on the SATs, while 1600 -- 800 on the verbal and math -- is a perfect score. SATs are used by colleges and universities as one gauge of how strong a student performs academically.
The state average on the SATs is 1028, while the national average is 1020. A total of 452 New Bedford High School seniors took the SATs last year, representing 68 percent of the total class.
More New Bedford High School seniors are taking the SATs, however, than seniors across the country. Forty-six percent of all seniors nationally take the SATs.
Beverly A. Bizzarro, assistant headmaster at New Bedford High School, told the School Committee this week that various factors should be considered when reviewing the school's scores, especially in comparison to the rest of the state. While nearly a third of the state's residents have a college degree and less than 7 percent live below the poverty line, only a 10th of the city's residents have a college degree, and 17 percent live below the poverty line.
"While these factors by themselves do not solely explain the local scores, they do have a bearing," Ms. Bizzarro wrote in her report to the committee.
This story appeared on Page A4 of The Standard-Times on September 13, 2002.
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