Sixth consecutive year of declines with average down in every academic subject

Bob Unruh
WND News Center

Many of America’s teachers’ unions and school districts have gone to the far-left politically, advocating for social and ideological programming for America’s students.

And it shows.

A report from ACT, which administers the well-known college entrance exams for high-school students, says scores have fallen for the sixth year in a row.

This time the plunge was by one-third of a point on the 36-point scale.

The report noted 70% of seniors fall short of college readiness benchmarks in math, and about 40% meet “none” of the college readiness benchmarks.

ACT reported the average composite score fell to 19.5 points for the class of 2023, down 0.3 points from 2022.

The average scores in mathematics, reading, and science subjects were all below the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks for those subjects, the report said.

The benchmark scores are set at a level that if students reach them, they have a “high probability of success in credit-bearing first-year college courses.”

“ACT research continues to show that students meeting a benchmark on the test have approximately a 50% chance of earning a B or better and approximately a 75% chance of earning a C or better in the corresponding college course or courses,” the organization reported.

ACT chief Janet Godwin noted the sixth straight year of declines, and warned an increasing number of high school seniors are unable to meet any of the goals.

“The hard truth is that we are not doing enough to ensure that graduates are truly ready for postsecondary success in college and career. These systemic problems require sustained action and support at the policy level. This is not up to teachers and principals alone – it is a shared national priority and imperative,” she said.

The report also noted members of the class of 2023 were in their first year of high school when COVID-19 struck.

Only 21% of the class met all the benchmarks, while 43% met none.

The report said English scores declined 0.4 points, mathematics scores 0.3 points, reading scores 0.3 points and science declined by 0.3 points.

A wide range of assessments in recent months, additionally, have noted that fewer and fewer employers are calling for their new hires to have college degrees.