Wilton High School students may not be thinking about test taking right now during the summer, but there’s good news about their performance on the SATs. Students who took the statewide tests as 11th graders during the 2016-17 school year raised the district’s average scores over the 2015-16 test takers in both English/Language Arts (ELA) and Math.
The school’s average score on ELA went up to 620, which is 16-points higher than last year’s average score. Wilton’s test-takers also bumped up the average Math score by 11 points, bringing it to 607.
What’s more, there were a significant number of students who met or exceeded the state’s benchmark scores, most impressively in ELA, where 95.4% hit or surpassed the state standard; in Math, 77.3% of the students were at or above the measure the state uses to gauge them college ready. Both numbers were higher than last year’s percentages as well.
Where does that put Wilton in relation to the other districts in its District Reference Group (DRG)? Wilton had the highest percentage of students meeting or exceeding state standards in ELA, followed closely by Darien (94.8%), New Canaan (94.4%), Ridgefield (93.4%), Weston (92.5%), Westport (92.4%) and Region 9 (91%).
The story in math is a little different, with most other schools in the DRG faring a bit better that Wilton in the number of students who met or exceeded the state’s benchmark: Darien (86%), New Canaan (82%), Weston (82%), Westport (78.3%) Ridgefield (77.9%) and Region 9 (69.6%).
In 2015, Connecticut eliminated the Smarter Balanced Assessment Exam (SBAC) as the standardized test measuring CT students’ mastery, and replaced it with the SAT in an effort to reduce the amount of standardized testing required for public high school students. The state also eliminated the fee students previously were required to pay to take the test.