ACT scores matching grades

[Carpe Diem]

ACT composite of 28 is that an A student? What about a math score of 23 - 25? Would grades of A up thru PreCal be out of line?

 

Thanks!

[Tsuga]

Standardized test scores do not match grades because grades reflect effort and test scores, a measure of cultural fluency, IQ, and processing speed.

 

Lower grades + high test scores: either very challenging curriculum OR hard grades OR lazy student (the last was me)

 

Higher grades + low test scores: weak grading, OR easy classes, OR a very hard worker OR a bad tester.

 

If you are going to give a high grade, you should have an objective, third-party test (even schools do this because teachers are biased) to prove it. Ideally this will not have the same time limitations but will still have a reasonable time limitation because college tests are, after all, timed.

 

If you are going to give a low grade--meh, don't do it. One low grade won't stop grade inflation unless it's attached specifically to a policy push.

 

Good luck.

[scoutingmom]

 

 

Standardized test scores do not match grades because grades reflect effort and test scores, a measure of cultural fluency, IQ, and processing speed.

 

Lower grades + high test scores: either very challenging curriculum OR hard grades OR lazy student (the last was me)

 

 

 

Good luck.

Or a teacher that doesn't like the student.....

 

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[regentrude]

ACT composite of 28 is that an A student?

 

If you look up the percentile distributions, http://www.actstudent.org/scores/norms1.htmlyou find that 10% of all students have a composite score higher than 28.

I think we can safely assume that more than 10% of the students who take the ACT are A students (very low performing students won't take a college aptitude exam). That means that a certain portion of A students must have test scores below 28.

 

 

 

What about a math score of 23 - 25? Would grades of A up thru PreCal be out of line?

 

As Tsuga pointed out, there are many reasons test scores and grades can be misaligned.

 

The ACT math section does not actually test thorough math mastery. It tests how well students can solve the problems of the type that is on the ACT and how fast they are. Obviously, you have to know some math in order to achieve a 25. But even a top student may be too slow, have a bad day, test anxiety etc.

 

With a large discrepancy between test scores and grades, I would make sure to get some kind of outside classes into the mix, so that the college does not perceive this to be an artifact of your homeschool. And maybe retake the ACT if you feel that your student has the potential for a higher score.

[Tsuga]

Or a teacher that doesn't like the student.....

 

Sent from my SM-T530NU using Tapatalk

 

Fair enough, but OP was talking about As in all the student's math classes through pre-calculus.

[EKS]

If it were my student, I would be concerned about the math score.

[teachermom2834]

My ds has had As and Bs through a variety of courses (Jann in TX Alg 2, TT Geometry, Precal at CC, and stats dual enrollment at a 4 year university. It has been mostly As but he has worked very hard for them spending many hours studying and in the tutoring centers. It has never come easy. He got a 26 on math on the ACT. I know A students at our highly rated public school with ACTs in the 23 and up range. I think a 21 or 22 ACT kid could have As in the easiest college prep path at our schools. So, I would be comfortable calling the 28 kid an A student. A kid with a math score in that range I could see as an A kid in a non-accelerated, non-honors sequence. I wouldn't expect a kid with that math ACT to have As in calculus and beyond.

[klmama]

The 28 composite is fine for an A student.  With the lower math score, the English and reading were probably great.  It balances out.  A composite score of 28 will qualify a student for academic scholarships at many colleges, even with a lower math score. 

 

You didn't mention what math curriculum your dc used.  If your dc had to work hard for those As with an easier math curriculum, the lower ACT score would make perfect sense.  That doesn't mean your dc didn't earn the A, just that the curriculum wasn't particularly difficult.  I would not expect your dc to be placed in calculus when enrolling in college, but rather in a lower level course such as intermediate algebra, trigonometry, or college algebra. 

 

Did you go through the math test sections to see which topics scored lower percentiles?  If you want your dc to retake it, you'll want to know exactly what the issues were so your dc can study. 

 

 

 

[Wildcat]

OP, do you have a break down of which types of questions were missed? I would think that with that math score and having completed pre-calc that some pre-algebra/algebra/geometry skills were lost. I noticed with my own dc and many of their peers that the farther away from those 'easier' classes they got, the more they struggled in the ACT/SAT stuff. They had no problem getting the more difficult questions correct but had issues with the 'easy' and 'medium' questions. Lots of review on the pre-alg/alg/geometry stuff helped tremendously on a retake.

 

I would have no problem seeing an A student with that subscore and the composite you showed.

 

[Julie of KY]

ACT math score of 23 is only 67th percentile

        math score of 25 is 79th percentile

        math score of 28 is 91st percentile

 

I don't think grades match ACT scores - for lots of reasons as listed above, but I would look at where the score places the student compared to others and consider if you think that is a fair assessment. A hard working student could certainly have A's, but I'd make sure it's a decently challenging curriculum and that you are not just moving your student along in something easy.

[Carpe Diem]

Thanks everyone for your replies. Here is the deal. Student has been working through Chalk Dust math. PreCalc is just beginning for senior year. Student does fine on tests at chapter level but scores 23 on math ACT each time it has been taken despite lots of practice. Would an A for Alg I, II, and Geometry (on the transcript) be questioned? Should the grades be changed to fit the 23 or does it fit 23?

[teachermom2834]

I am no expert but I would let the As stand. 23 is not a high score but it is not terribly low. I think there are plenty of school kids who could have As in math and a 23. Even if a school kid got Bs on tests they could have homework, participation, extra credit. If your student earned As I would leave them. I don't think it is a big score/grade mismatch that would undermine credibility. Just my opinion, though. Interested in what others say.

[kiana]

23 at my university would place you into precalculus but not calculus. Seems legit to me. 

[RootAnn]

I have a niece whose composite was just above the national average and she had a 4.0 in public school. (Her school was not ranked very highly by US News & World Reports. Its college readiness score was a 10.3. However, my local one had a 9.6 and got a 'bronze' rank, so who knows? Her school has more kids who pass their APs than my local one.)

 

I think the grades are fine.

[The Girls' Mom]

I work in a  place where I see a lot of transcripts and ACT scores.  That combo wouldn't raise a flag at all.  I've seen a lot of 3.5+ GPAs come through with ACT scores in the mid 20s.  

The ones that make me raise my eyebrows are the 3.59 GPAs with a 15 ACT score.

[Janeway]

ACT scores do not match grades. If every child took the same classes with the same rigor and presentation, then it might. But, a child who takes all remedial classes might earn all A's and have a 21 on the ACT. Another child who has all heavy rigorous courses, advanced and with a lot of hard work, might earn B's and get a 32 on the ACT.

[Carpe Diem]

Thanks everyone!