Rochester students score just above state average on ACT test

Jul. 20—ROCHESTER — Rochester students scored just above the state average last year in the results of the ACT college placement test.

The School Board reviewed the data during a study session Tuesday. The ACT test scores students in four areas: reading, math, English, and science reasoning.

"There's no real trend up or down," said Peter Wruck, RPS director of research, when describing Rochester's performance on the ACT in recent years. "We're slightly above the state average, just slightly. Minnesota is one of the top scoring states on the ACT in general."

According to ACT, the scores can range from 1-36. The composite score is an average of the scores from the four subject areas.

The composite score of Rochester students during 2021-22 was 21, ranking in the 52nd percentile statewide and the 56th percentile nationwide.

That was down just slightly from the year before. During 2020-21, the composite score was 22, ranking in the 56th percentile statewide and the 59th percentile nationwide. Rochester's composite score has bounced back and forth between 21 and 22 over the last four years.

There are disparities among the composite scores of the various student subgroups. In 2021-22, white and Asian students each scored a composite of 22, while Black students scored the lowest in the district at 17. Hispanic students scored 18, American Indian students scored 20, and students of two or more races scored 21.

"Some of our demographic groups are scoring even a third to 40% lower than others," Wruck said. "These disparities are stubborn and roughly consistent over time."

He went on to explain that the ACT test does not necessarily hold the same importance that it once did.

"Its utility in college admissions has been on the decline," Wruck said. "Both (the) SAT and ACT are being required less and less. Or, even if they are still required, they're being given less weight within the admissions process."