Opposite of national, state trend

August 28, 2007

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

August 28, 2007, Redmond, Wash. – While national and state mean scores for college-bound seniors dipped in 2007, Lake Washington School District (LWSD) seniors scored higher on all three tests: critical reading, writing and mathematics. At the same time, the number of students taking the test increased, from1,136 in 2006 to 1,176 in 2007.

Scores for Lake Washington seniors jumped five points on average in critical reading. They averaged 552 in 2007, compared to 526 for all students statewide and 502 for all students who took the SAT. Both the state and national averages were one point lower than last year.

Math scores for LWSD college-bound seniors averaged 563 in 2007, up one point from the 562 average in 2006. The mean for all college-bound seniors who took the test is 515, down three points, and Washington state students scored 531, down one point.

Writing scores also increased for LWSD college-bound seniors, from 541 in 2006 to 542 in 2007. State scores averaged 510, down from 511, and scores for all students who took the SAT averaged 494, down from 497.

“I’m proud of the work of our teachers and high school students,” noted Superintendent Chip Kimball. “Over the last five years, our reading and math scores are up eight points and seven points, respectively, while both state and national averages have gone down. These results reflect a lot of hard work.”

Lake Washington School District is the sixth largest district in the state of Washington. It has over 23,000 students in 48 schools located in Kirkland, Redmond, and Sammamish, Washington.

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