Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
State averages for the Scholastic Assessment Test rose in 1998, but scores in three Kosciusko County school districts went down.
According to the Indiana Department of Education, statewide verbal averages rose from 494 in 1997 to 497 in 1998, and the mathematics scores went up from 497 to 500.
The jump in the Indiana scores boosted the state's ranking five points, from 47th to 42nd in the nation.
However, school corporations in Kosciusko County reported wide variances in their SAT scores. The scores for Warsaw Community High School went down, from a verbal score of 513 in 1997 to 501 in 1998, and from a math score of 508 in 1997 to 487 in 1998.
Dr. Tony Etienne, assistant superintendent for WCS, said 170 seniors out of a class of 369 took the SATs in 1998. The reasons for the drop in scores, he said, are as numerous as the kids who took the test.
"The main reason is that each individual class is a different group of kids," he said.
The scores for Wawasee High School dropped as well, going from a verbal score of 518 in 1997 to 496 in 1998, and a math score of 515 in 1997 to 506 in 1998.
Tom Toomey, director of instruction for Wawasee, said, "It's a completely different group of people who took the test (in 1998)."
Toomey said 139 seniors took the test in 1998, out of a class of 260.
Tippecanoe Valley High School also saw scores drop, from a 1997 verbal score of 488 to a 1998 score of 472, and a 1997 math score of 485 to 471 in 1998.
Seventy-two seniors, out of a class of 136, took the SAT in 1998, said TV guidance counselor Jo Gamble.
Triton's scores went up, from a verbal score of 492 in 1997 to 508 in 1998, and from 506 in math in 1997 to 508 in 1998.
Of Triton's 1998 senior class of 85 students, 56 took the SAT, said guidance counselor Hugh Rettinger.
The scores for Whitko High School rose even more dramatically - going from a verbal score of 498 in 1997 to 516 in 1998, and a math score of 490 in 1997 to 503 in 1998.
Of the 138 Whitko graduates in 1998, 57 students took the SATs, said Karen Imhoff, guidance director.
"We had a really strong group of test-takers last year," she said.
All of the administrators cautioned that SAT scores from a single year should not be taken too seriously without considering past performance.
"The historical trend is more important than one isolated year," Etienne said. "There are other factors to consider when looking at numbers. Not every class of seniors is going to have the same academic ability."
Toomey echoed Etienne's comments: "It's certainly an indicator, but it goes beyond that. ... You have to take a look at the total picture of how the entire school system is doing."
Nationally, the 1998 verbal score stayed the same as last year's, and the math score rose only one point. The SAT scores nationwide in 1997 were 505 for verbal and 511 for math. For 1998 they were 505 for verbal and 512 for math.
In Indiana, 59 percent of high school seniors took the SATs, compared to 43 percent nationally.
