| For immediate release September 3, 2010 |
Contact:
Larry Slonaker, SCCOE Phone: (408) 453-6662 |
Number of county's "college-ready" students rises
SAN JOSE, CA – The number of Santa Clara County 11th graders who scored at a "ready for college" level on California State University's Early Assessment Program tests in English rose to 29 percent from a year ago--even as the number of students who take both the English and math tests continues to rise, according to an analysis of the results by the Santa Clara County Office of Education.
Of the 16,350 11th-grade students in Santa Clara County who completed the 2010 EAP test in English, 29 percent scored at a level indicating they are on track to be college-ready in English upon graduation. This was a three percentage-point increase over 2009, when 26 percent were at the "ready for college" level.
The news was not as good in mathematics, however. On the 2010 test, 66 percent of the 8,954 county test-takers demonstrated "full or conditional" college readiness. This number declined two percentage points from 2009.
Students in the Fremont Union High School District had the county's top scores
in English, with
52 percent scoring at the ready-for-college-level. Palo Alto Unified students had the top math scores, with 87 percent fully or conditionally ready for college-level math.
As is typical, Santa Clara County students outperformed their statewide counterparts. In English, county students who scored at a college-ready level scored eight percentage points higher than the statewide number of 21 percent. And in math, county students outperformed their counterparts by nine percentage points.
The number of county 11th graders who took the tests increased for the fifth year in a row. Between 2006 and 2010, the number of students taking EAP English increased 39 percent, and the number taking math increased 29 percent.
Created in 2006, the EAP is a collaborative effort between the CSU, the California Department of Education, and the California State Board of Education. It is designed to ensure that the state's college-bound high school seniors are college-ready in the critically important content areas of English and mathematics.
Students who score high enough on the EAP test can receive exemptions from being required to take CSU English and math placement tests given to entering freshman.
Date last updated: September 3, 2010
