Office of the Governor: College Board Praises Performance of Alabama Public School Students on AP and SAT
- Advanced Placement (AP) Participation and SAT Scores Outpace the Nation

FROM THE OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR

August 26, 2008

MONTGOMERY - The College Board released results today that show the number of Alabama public school students taking Advanced Placement (AP) exams increased by 24.3 percent in 2008, compared to the national increase of 8.6 percent. The number of AP test-takers who achieved a score of 3-5 on AP exams increased by 7.8 percent; again exceeding the national increase of 5.7 percent.

AP PARTICIPATION & SCORE INCREASES

# of AP Test-Takers
# of 3-5 AP Scores

ALABAMA
24.3%
7.8%

U.S.
8.6%
5.7%

“These results are absolutely incredible,” said Governor Bob Riley. “They clearly show that after just one year of funding, our AP Initiative is working to make more Alabama students college-ready. We’re off to a great start, but we must do more. We must make sure every high school can offer AP courses in all the four core subject areas. With the continued expansion of both our AP Initiative and ACCESS Distance Learning, we can offer these rigorous, high-quality courses to every high school student in the state.”

The College Board also reports that 2008 SAT Reasoning Test scores for Alabama’s public school students are up from 2007 scores by 3 points in reading and 2 points in math. The College Board praised the Governor, State Superintendent, and State Board of Education for their emphasis on advanced academics for Alabama’s high school students.

Gaston Caperton, President, The College Board, said, “I congratulate the state of Alabama, its educators, students, and families for their efforts to increase the college readiness of Alabama’s students. The improvement in students’ skills is evident in the higher overall SAT scores this year and in the number of students who are succeeding on Advanced Placement Examinations. Not only are more students taking AP in high school, they are going on to take AP Exams and earning grades of 3 to 5.

“Governor Bob Riley, Superintendent Joe Morton and his Department of Education, district and school leaders, and the A+ College Ready team have been proponents of a college-readiness system in Alabama backed by a robust professional development program for teachers. I am confident that the new ‘First Choice’ program that schedules students for rigorous courses will translate into higher standards for the state’s students and will surely lead to global promise for the citizens of Alabama.”

The Advanced Placement Program offers high school students the opportunity to take college-level courses, and perhaps earn college credit. AP students traditionally perform better on the SAT and ACT, and AP exam scores of 3-5 are indicators of future success in college.

In every minority group, substantial gains were made in the number of students making scores of 3-5 on AP Exams.

GAINS IN 3-5 SCORES ON AP EXAMS

POPULATION GROUP
INCREASE

American Indian
19%

Asian
16.9%

African-American
22.2%

Hispanic
21.7%

White
6.8%

Alabama
7.8%

U.S.
5.7%

More Good News from The College Board

For the 17th consecutive year, Alabama’s public high school students scored above the national average on the 2008 SAT Reasoning Test.

SAT SCORES

READING
MATH
WRITING

ALABAMA
562
558
551

U.S.
497
510
488

Compared to the rest of the nation, more Alabama public school students scored 700-800 - 800 is a perfect SAT score - on all three sections of the SAT. Twice as many Alabama students scored 700-800 in Math and almost three times as many scored 700-800 in Reading and Writing.

SAT SCORES OF 700-800

READING
MATH
WRITING

ALABAMA
11.8%
11%
9.3%

U.S.
4%
5.5%
3.6%

Thirty percent of Alabama’s public school SAT test-takers were minorities. All minority groups scored above the national average on the 2008 SAT.

POPULATION GROUP
ALABAMA
U.S.

READING
MATH
WRITING
READING
MATH
WRITING

American Indian
564
534
562
481
487
466

Asian
563
628
563
512
569
512

African-American
472
452
472
425
424
419

Hispanic
442
552
558
449
457
442

White
585
577
569
524
535
513

“The College Board data released today shows Alabama is moving forward,” said State Superintendent of Education Dr. Joe Morton. “Our students’ scores reflect that Alabama has a plan to educate all students and that the plan is working. We continue to raise the bar and still see increases. The State Board of Education recently adopted First Choice, which increases academic expectations and opportunities for our graduates. Through the First Choice options of Credit Recovery, Credit Advancement, On-Line Learning, and Credit-Based Endorsement, our students will be ready for college, the work place, and the global 21st century.

“The state’s investment in AP is producing positive results,” continued Dr. Morton. “AP participation and scores are now steadily on the rise in Alabama’s public schools. ACCESS [Alabama Connecting Classrooms, Educators, and Students Statewide] expansion, the department’s Alabama Advanced Placement Initiative, and A+ College Ready are contributing to Alabama’s AP growth. Currently, over 45 percent of our high schools have ACCESS. By 2009 - two years ahead of schedule, ACCESS will be available in every public high school in Alabama.”

Through ACCESS, more Alabama public school students are benefitting from more course offerings, including 14 foreign language courses. ACCESS also offers 11 AP courses:

1. AP English Language and Composition
2. AP English Literature and Composition
3. AP United States History
4. AP Macroeconomics
5. AP U.S. Government and Politics
6. AP Biology
7. AP Calculus AB
8. AP Statistics
9. AP Psychology
10. AP Art History
11. AP Computer Science A

The Alabama Advanced Placement Initiative funds the expansion of AP classes in rural and urban schools. The AP Initiative also provides On-site Pre-AP and AP Professional Development and a Mentoring Program for AP teachers. A+ College Ready has strengthened AP courses in math, science, and English through professional development and mentoring for teachers, identification of lead teachers, additional time for student learning, and financial incentives based on academic results.

Alabama’s 2,361 SAT test-takers, representing 6 percent of Alabama’s public high school graduates, are attending in-state colleges and universities. The top five Alabama schools receiving the most SAT score reports from Alabama test-takers were The University of Alabama, Auburn University, University of Alabama Birmingham, University of Alabama Huntsville, and University of South Alabama. Over 11,000 out-of-state students are sending their SAT scores to Auburn University and over 7,000 to The University of Alabama.

For more information, visit http://www.collegeboard.com.

For more contact information, visit Governor Bob Riley's Web Site: http://www.governor.alabama.gov/ For videos of Governor Bob Riley visit: http://www.media.alabama.gov/ .