High School Seniors Gain in SAT Scores : Academics: Results on college entrance exams are up but the percentage of Ventura County students scoring well was below the statewide average last year.

Ventura County high school seniors are doing better on college entrance tests than their counterparts a few years ago, and more are taking college preparation courses, according to a state Department of Education report to be released today.

Compared to 1984, 47% more seniors in Ventura County scored 450 or better on the verbal portion of the Scholastic Aptitude Test last year, and 66% more scored at least 500 on the math portion of the test. The scale for each portion of the SAT is a minimum of 400 and a maximum of 800 points.

Despite such gains, fewer Ventura County students scored well on the SAT exam than students statewide, the report showed. Last year, 18.7% of the students statewide scored 450 or better on the verbal portion, while in Ventura County only 14.8% of the seniors scored 450 or more.

Only two local districts, Conejo Valley Unified and Oak Park Unified, had a significantly higher percentage of students scoring well on both portions of the SAT last year than the state average.

But in other districts, including Fillmore Unified, Moorpark Unified, Ojai Unified, Oxnard Union High, Santa Paula Union High, Simi Valley Unified and Ventura Unified, the percentages of students meeting the 450 verbal and 500 math benchmarks were below the state average last year.

School officials in several districts attributed the below-state-average scores to several factors, including large numbers of students in some districts who speak limited English, differing levels of education among parents and varying levels of affluence.

Also, more students are taking the SAT, which may account for some of the gains, but larger test groups also bring down the average scores, some district officials said.

“One of the things we’ve come to see over the years is there’s a strong correlation in how you do on these assessments and your socioeconomic status,” said Marlene Davis, superintendent of the Fillmore district.

Fillmore High, in one of the county’s poorest areas, has made some gains despite the fact that a majority of parents--about 63%--have only a high school degree or less, and the number of students with limited English skills has risen, Davis said.

The district has only recently begun an effort to offer advanced placement classes, and just this year started honors courses in English and Spanish, Davis said.

The number of Fillmore Unified students scoring 500 or better in math on the SATs increased 34% over five years, but students scoring 450 or better on the verbal portion declined by 2%.

The state report also measured other indicators of college preparedness, including the number of students who met course requirements for entrance into University of California schools and the number of students who passed advanced placement tests. State officials said those areas may be better gauges of how well students will do in college than SAT scores.

Countywide, both in 1985 and last year, the number of Ventura County seniors who took the University of California’s required courses was slightly better than the state average. Last year, for example, 30.8% of the graduating seniors took the courses, compared with a statewide average of 30.6%.

However, the number of Ventura County students who took advanced placement tests and passed was lower than the state average. In Ventura County last year, 18.3% of the seniors taking the exams passed, while statewide 20.3% passed.

The report held good news for Fillmore in the area of course requirements for the University of California: 52% of Fillmore students met University of California course requirements, significantly higher than the 30.6% state average.

In some districts, officials have set goals for continued improvement in preparing students for college.

In the Conejo Valley Unified district, combined SAT scores have increased from 933 in 1984 to 967 for 1989, but the district is aiming for an average of 1010, said Assistant Supt. Richard Simpson.

At Ventura Unified, officials have stiffened graduation requirements, making an increased number of math and other academic courses mandatory, said Jeffrey Davies, director of evaluation and informational services.

The Oxnard Union High district is aiming to have half of all its graduating seniors meet California State University entrance requirements by 1995, said Assistant Supt. Gary Davis. “We’re doing a lot more to make sure the student always takes the most challenging curriculum,” Davis said.

SAT SCORES

Scores of Ventura County high school seniors on the Scholastic Aptitude Test

VERBAL MATH % Scoring 450+ % Scoring 500+ Class Class % Class Class % District of ’84 of ’89 Change of ’84 of ’89 Change Conejo Valley Unified 22.1 25.9 +17 22.7 29.3 +29 Oxnard Union High * 9.6 ** * 11.2 ** Simi Valley Unified 9.6 13.2 +38 10.2 17.0 +67 Ventura Unified 11.6 16.1 +39 11.8 15.7 +33 Fillmore Unified 5.2 5.1 -2 3.8 5.1 +34 Moorpark Unified 9.3 8.4 -10 7.5 9.0 +20 Oak Park Unified 21.9 24.2 +11 26.0 23.2 -11 Ojai Unified 15.9 15.9 0 10.6 18.8 +77 Santa Paula Union High 5.3 2.5 -53 2.6 2.9 +12 Countywide totals 10.1 14.8 +47 10.1 16.8 +66 Statewide average 15.5 18.7 +21 16.5 20.5 +24

* Not available

** Unable to calculate