Office of Strategic Research The Impact of ACT Superscoring in

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OfficeofStrategicResearch

TheImpactofACTSuperscoringinMississippi

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TheOfficeofStrategicResearchanalyzedstate‐levelACTdatausedbytheOfficeofStateStudent

FinancialAidtostudytheimpactofsuperscoringacrossMississippi.Thedataincludesmorethan

150,000studentsattendingaMississippipublicorprivatehighschoolwhotooktheACTbetween

February2012andNovember2019.

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WhatisACTSuperscoring?

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ACTSuperscoringtakesthehighestACTsubjecttestscore(English,reading,math,andscience)

acrossalladministrations,andrecalculatesacompositescorebasedonthehighestsubtestscores.

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TESTDATE ENGLISH MATH READING SCIENCE COMPOSITE

FEBRUARY

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17 18 19 21 19

APRIL

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19 19 20 22 20

JUNE

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19 18 22 22 20

SUPERSCORE

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19 19 22 22 21

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*Reflectshighestsubtestscore—acrossalladministrations—usedinsuperscorecompositecalculation.In

thisexamplethestudentdidnotearnhigherthana20compositescoreonindividualexams,butearneda

21compositescorefromsuperscoring.

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WhobenefitsfromACTSuperscoring?

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Studentswhohavetheopportunitytotakethe ACTmultipletimesbenefitthemostfromACT

superscoring.MississippidatareflectsthefollowingbenefitsfromtakingtheACTmultipletimes:

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NUMBEROFACTTESTSPERSTUDENT

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1x 2x 3x

4x* 5x 6+x

HIGHESTCOMPOSITE 16.7 18.8 20.3 21.6 22.8 23.2

SUPERSCORECOMPOSITE 16.7 19.2 21.0 22.4 23.7 24.3

CHANGE(INCREASE) 0 0.4 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.1

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*ACTwillgivefourfeewaiversbeginningSeptember2020.

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ACTActivitybyEthnicityandGender‐OfthestudentswhotaketheACTtwotimes,the

distributionbyethnicityisreasonablyevenamongAfrican‐American(45.9%)andWhite(43.0%)

students.However,thatdistributionshiftsasstudentstaketheACTmultipletimes.Ofthe

studentswhotaketheACTfivetimes,White(62.9%)studentsoutnumberAfrican‐American

(27.9%)studentsbya2:1ratio.

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NUMBEROFTESTS

GENDER ETHNICITY

1X %of1X 2X %of2X 3X %of3X

FEMALE BLACK 10,847 18.4% 9,110 24.9% 6,600 25.9%

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WHITE

9,014 15.3% 7,933 21.6% 6,677 26.2%

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OTHER

2,335 4.0% 1,363 3.7% 1,016 4.0%

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UNKNOWN

3,162 5.4% 580 1.6% 225 0.9%

 TOTAL

25,358 43.1% 18,986 51.8% 14,518 57.0%

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   

MALE BLACK

12,862 21.9% 7,594 20.7% 4,274 16.8%

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WHITE

12,289 20.9% 7,763 21.2% 5,452 21.4%

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OTHER

2,913 5.0% 1,301 3.5% 747 2.9%

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UNKNOWN

3,405 5.8% 672 1.8% 250 1.0%

 TOTAL

31,469 53.5% 17,330 47.3% 10,723 42.1%

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   

UNKNOWN BLACK

18 0.0% 105 0.3% 80 0.3%

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WHITE

9 0.0% 79 0.2% 74 0.3%

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OTHER

2 0.0% 10 0.0% 8 0.0%

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UNKNOWN

1,940 3.3% 147 0.4% 54 0.2%

 TOTAL

1,969 3.3% 341 0.9% 216 0.8%

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   

TOTAL BLACK

23,727 40.4% 16,809 45.9% 10,954 43.0%

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WHITE

21,312 36.2% 15,775 43.0% 12,203 47.9%

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OTHER

5,250 8.9% 2,674 7.3% 1,771 7.0%

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UNKNOWN

8,507 14.5% 1,399 3.8% 529 2.1%

 TOTAL

58,796 100.0% 36,657 100.0% 25,457 100.0%

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GENDER ETHNICITY 4X %of4X 5X  %of5X 6+X %of6+X

FEMALE BLACK 3,197 21.7%

1,292 18.0% 1,176 15.6%

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WHITE 4,683 31.8%

2,722 38.0% 2,919 38.7%

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OTHER 644 4.4%

323 4.5% 427 5.7%

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UNKNOWN 153 1.0%

57 0.8% 104 1.4%

 TOTAL 8,677 58.9%

4,394 61.4% 4,626 61.3%

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 

MALE BLACK 1,971 13.4% 697 9.7% 667 8.8%

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WHITE 3,436 23.3%

1,758 24.6% 1,799 23.8%

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OTHER 453 3.1%

197 2.8% 331 4.4%

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UNKNOWN 126 0.9%

70 1.0% 92 1.2%

 TOTAL 5,986 40.6%

2,722 38.0% 2,889 38.3%

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 

UNKNOWN BLACK 18 0.1% 6 0.1% 7 0.1%

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WHITE 36 0.2%

20 0.3% 16 0.2%

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OTHER 3 0.0%

3 0.0% 5 0.1%

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UNKNOWN 20 0.1%

13 0.2% 3 0.0%

 TOTAL 77 0.5%

42 0.6% 31 0.4%

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 

TOTAL BLACK 5,186 35.2% 1,995 27.9% 1,850 24.5%

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WHITE 8,155 55.3%

4,500 62.9% 4,734 62.7%

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OTHER 1,100 7.5%

523 7.3% 763 10.1%

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UNKNOWN 299 2.0%

140 2.0% 199 2.6%

 TOTAL 14,740 100.0%

7,158 100.0% 7,546 100.0%

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SuperscoringChangesbyEthnicityandGender‐

MississippiACTdatasuggestscompositescores

improveasstudentstakethetestmultipletimes.StudentswhotaketheACTtwicegenerally

experienceahalf‐point(+0.45)increaseintheirsuperscoredcompositescore.Studentswhotake

theACTfivetimesgenerallyexperienceaonepoint(+0.97)increaseintheirsuperscored

compositescore.

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NUMBEROFTESTS

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1X 2X 3X

GENDER ETHNICITY

HIGHEST SUPER CHANGE HIGHEST SUPER CHANGE HIGHEST SUPER CHANGE

FEMALE BLACK

15.31 15.31 0.00 16.84 17.30 0.46 17.91 18.61 0.70

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WHITE

18.56 18.56 0.00 20.75 21.21 0.46 22.20 22.90 0.70

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OTHER

17.27 17.27 0.00 19.53 19.96 0.43 21.21 21.93 0.72

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UNKNOWN

16.82 16.82 0.00 18.99 19.42 0.43 20.60 21.31 0.71

 TOTAL

16.83 16.83 0.00 18.73 19.19 0.46 20.15 20.86 0.71

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     

MALE BLACK

14.93 14.93 0.00 16.48 16.93 0.45 17.62 18.31 0.69

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WHITE

18.19 18.19 0.00 20.90 21.34 0.44 22.51 23.17 0.66

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OTHER

17.14 17.14 0.00 19.98 20.44 0.46 21.46 22.14 0.68

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UNKNOWN

16.62 16.62 0.00 19.07 19.49 0.42 20.75 21.36 0.61

 TOTAL

16.58 16.58 0.00 18.82 19.27 0.45 20.45 21.12 0.67

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     

UNKNOWN BLACK

15.39 15.39 0.00 15.70 16.18 0.48 16.36 16.96 0.60

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WHITE

17.78 17.78 0.00 19.41 19.86 0.45 22.47 23.24 0.77

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OTHER

14.00 14.00 0.00 17.30 17.70 0.40 22.88 23.63 0.75

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UNKNOWN

16.05 16.05 0.00 19.20 19.60 0.40 21.63 22.31 0.68

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TOTAL

16.05 16.05 0.00 18.11 18.55 0.44 20.01 20.70 0.69

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     

TOTAL BLACK

15.10 15.10 0.00 16.67 17.13 0.46 17.78 18.48 0.70

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WHITE

17.20 17.20 0.00 19.74 20.18 0.44 21.32 22.03 0.71

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OTHER

18.35 18.35 0.00 20.82 21.27 0.45 22.34 23.03 0.69



UNKNOWN

16.56 16.56 0.00 19.05 19.48 0.43 20.78 21.44 0.66

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TOTAL

16.67 16.67 0.00 18.77 19.22 0.45 20.28 20.97 0.69

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

4X 5X 6+X

GENDER ETHNICITY HIGHEST SUPER CHANGE

HIGHEST SUPER CHANGE HIGHEST SUPER CHANGE

FEMALE BLACK 18.88 19.72 0.84

19.51 20.46 0.95 19.63 20.66 1.03



WHITE 23.20 24.04 0.84

23.96 24.93 0.97 24.42 25.49 1.07



OTHER 22.42 23.26 0.84

23.86 24.90 1.04 23.37 24.36 0.99



UNKNOWN 21.01 21.70 0.69

22.74 23.79 1.05 23.01 24.10 1.09

 TOTAL 21.51 22.34 0.83

22.63 23.60 0.97 23.07 24.12 1.05



  

MALE BLACK 18.21 19.01 0.80 18.95 19.88 0.93 19.12 20.16 1.04



WHITE 23.47 24.25 0.78

24.48 25.45 0.97 25.00 26.06 1.06



OTHER 22.93 23.70 0.77

24.09 25.09 1.00 24.30 25.27 0.97



UNKNOWN 21.10 21.82 0.72

23.10 24.03 0.93 22.74 23.65 0.91

 TOTAL 21.64 22.43 0.79

23.00 23.96 0.96 23.49 24.53 1.04



  

UNKNOWN BLACK 17.00 17.94 0.94 21.17 22.00 0.83 18.57 19.14 0.57



WHITE 20.14 20.92 0.78

23.85 24.75 0.90 26.25 27.13 0.88



OTHER 24.00 24.67 0.67

18.33 18.67 0.34 26.20 27.80 1.60



UNKNOWN 24.10 24.95 0.85

24.08 25.00 0.92 21.00 22.00 1.00



TOTAL 20.58 21.42 0.84

23.14 24.00 0.86 24.00 24.94 0.94



  

TOTAL BLACK 18.62 19.44 0.82 19.32 20.27 0.95 19.45 20.47 1.02



WHITE 22.63 23.44 0.81

23.91 24.94 1.03 23.79 24.77 0.98



OTHER 21.25 21.97 0.72

24.16 25.13 0.97 24.64 25.71 1.07



UNKNOWN 23.3 24.11 0.81

23.04 24.02 0.98 22.85 23.86 1.01



TOTAL 21.56 22.38 0.82

22.77 23.74 0.97 23.24 24.28 1.04

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SuperscoringbyHighSchool–Theimpactofsuperscoringwillvarybyhighschoolbutwillbedirectlylinkedtothe

numberoftestsperstudent.



SortedinAlphabeticalOrder

HIGHSCHOOL STUDENTS

ACT

TESTS

TESTSPER

STUDENT HIGHSCHOOL STUDENTS

ACT

TESTS

TESTSPER

STUDENT

BAYHIGHSCHOOL 138 306 2.2 MOSSPOINTHIGHSCHOOL 143 280 2.0

BILOXIHIGHSCHOOL 453 950 2.1 MURRAHHIGHSCHOOL 342 743 2.2

BRANDONHIGHSCHOOL 417 999 2.4 NATCHEZHIGHSCHOOL 214 373 1.7

BROOKHAVENHIGHSCHOOL 184 367 2.0 NESHOBACENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 224 473 2.1

CALEDONIAHIGHSCHOOL 145 307 2.1 NEWALBANYHIGHSCHOOL 135 272 2.0

CANTON

HIGHSCHOOL 209 461 2.2 NEWHOPEHIGHSCHOOL 195 415 2.1

CARTHAGEHIGHSCHOOL 137 272 2.0 NEWTONCOUNTYHIGHSCHOOL 130 273 2.1

CENTERHILLHIGHSCHOOL 252 577 2.3 NORTHPIKEHIGHSCHOOL 188 393 2.1

CLARKSDALEHIGHSCHOOL 160 299 1.9 NORTHEASTHIGHSCHOOL 154 335

2.2

CLEVELANDCENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 137 232 1.7 NORTHEASTJONESHIGHSCHOOL 185 340 1.8

CLINTONHIGHSCHOOL 375 930 2.5 NORTHWESTRANKINHIGHSCHOOL 418 1,026 2.5

COLUMBUSHIGHSCHOOL 245 477 1.9 OAKGROVEHIGHSCHOOL 433 1,098 2.5

CORINTHHIGHSCHOOL 148 341 2.3 OCEANSPRINGSHIGHSCHOOL

 460 1,129 2.5

DIBERVILLEHIGHSCHOOL 309 685 2.2 OLIVEBRANCHHIGHSCHOOL 272 583 2.1

DESOTOCENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 447 1,056 2.4 OSCARHWINGFIELDHIGHSCHOOL 165 260 1.6

EASTCENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 175 413 2.4 OXFORDHIGHSCHOOL 333 809 2.4

FLORENCEHIGHSCHOOL 188 362

1.9 PASCAGOULAHIGHSCHOOL 265 549 2.1

FORESTHILLHIGHSCHOOL 244 470 1.9 PASSCHRISTIANHIGHSCHOOL 147 322 2.2

FORRESTCOUNTYAHS 143 281 2.0 PEARLHIGHSCHOOL 294 673 2.3

GAUTIERHIGHSCHOOL 210 424 2.0 PEARLRIVERCENTRALHIGHSCH  262 562 2.1

GENTRYHIGH

SCHOOL 163 341 2.1 PETALHIGHSCHOOL 309 634 2.1

GEORGECOUNTYHIGHSCHOOL 301 653 2.2 PICAYUNEMEMORIALHIGHSCHOOL 219 457 2.1

GERMANTOWNHIGHSCHOOL 300 876 2.9 PONTOTOCHIGHSCHOOL 205 373 1.8

GREENECOUNTYHIGHSCHOOL 142 263 1.9 POPLARVILLEHIGHSCHOOL 160 300 1.9

GREENVILLE‐

WESTONHS‐GHS 347 575 1.7 PROVINEHIGHSCHOOL 269 421 1.6

GREENWOODSENIORHIGHSCHOOL 162 362 2.2 PURVISHIGHSCHOOL 141 303 2.1

GRENADAHIGHSCHOOL 241 454 1.9 QUITMANHIGHSCHOOL 132 276 2.1

GULFPORTHIGHSCHOOL 386 746 1.9 RAYMONDHIGHSCHOOL 148 294 2.0

HANCOCKHIGH

SCHOOL 306 681 2.2 RICHLANDATTENDANCECENTER 142 286 2.0

HARRISONCENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 405 718 1.8 RIDGELANDHIGHSCHOOL 257 587 2.3

HATTIESBURGHIGHSCHOOLBLAIR 237 525 2.2 ROBERTMCALLAWAYHIGHSCHOOL 253 453 1.8

HERNANDOHIGHSCHOOL 300 688 2.3 SAINTMARTINHIGHSCHOOL 307 732

2.4

HORNLAKEHIGHSCHOOL 325 695 2.1 SALTILLOHIGHSCHOOL 238 509 2.1

ITAWAMBACOAGRHIGHSCHOOL 136 230 1.7 SHANNONHIGHSCHOOL 136 204 1.5

JACKSONPREPARATORYSCHOOL 148 510 3.4 SOUTHJONESHIGHSCHOOL 193 365 1.9

JACOBJMCCLAINHIGHSCHOOL 207 355 1.7 SOUTHPANOLA

HIGHSCHOOL 289 563 1.9

JIMHILLSENIORHIGHSCHOOL 267 516 1.9 SOUTHAVENHIGHSCHOOL 445 880 2.0

KOSCIUSKOSENIORHIGHSCHOOL 151 322 2.1 STARKVILLEHIGHSCHOOL 347 757 2.2

LAFAYETTEHIGHSCHOOL 195 342 1.8 STONEHIGHSCHOOL 177 317 1.8

LAKECORMORANTHIGHSCHOOL  225 438

1.9 SUMRALLHIGHSCHOOL 139 325 2.3

LANIERHIGHSCHOOL 136 220 1.6 TERRYHIGHSCHOOL 307 741 2.4

LAURELHIGHSCHOOL 209 499 2.4 TISHOMINGOCOHIGHSCHOOL 151 297 2.0

LAWRENCECOUNTYHIGHSCHOOL 147 307 2.1 TUPELOHIGHSCHOOL 488 1,038 2.1

LEWISBURGHIGHSCHOOL 258 674 2.6

 VANCLEAVEHIGHSCHOOL 172 407 2.4

LONGBEACHSENIORHIGHSCHOOL 234 495 2.1 VICKSBURGHIGHSCHOOL 254 442 1.7

LOUISVILLEHIGHSCHOOL 132 268 2.0 WARRENCENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 306 631 2.1

MADISONCENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 480 1,376 2.9 WAYNECOUNTYHIGHSCHOOL 234 433 1.9

MCCOMBHIGHSCHOOL

165 312 1.9 WESTHARRISONHIGHSCHOOL 268 550 2.1

MENDENHALLHIGHSCHOOL 156 290 1.9 WESTJONESJR‐SRHIGHSCHOOL 219 432 2.0

MERIDIANHIGHSCHOOL 339 669 2.0 WESTLAUDERDAL E HIGHSCHOOL 164 418 2.5



WESTPOINTHIGHSCHOOL 228 433 1.9



5|Page



SortedbyTestsperStudent

HIGHSCHOOL STUDENTS

ACT

TESTS

TESTSPER

STUDENT HIGHSCHOOL STUDENTS

ACT

TESTS

TESTSPER

STUDENT

JACKSONPREPARATORYSCHOOL 148 510 3.4 KOSCIUSKOSENIORHIGHSCHOOL 151 322 2.1

MADISONCENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 480 1,376 2.9 LAWRENCECOUNTYHIGHSCHOOL 147 307 2.1

GERMANTOWNHIGHSCHOOL 300 876 2.9 CALEDONIAHIGHSCHOOL 145 307 2.1

LEWISBURGHIGHSCHOOL 258 674 2.6 PURVISHIGHSCHOOL 141 303 2.1

OCEANSPRINGSHIGHSCHOOL 460 1,129 2.5 QUITMANHIGHSCHOOL 132 276 2.1



OAKGROVEHIGHSCHOOL 433 1,098 2.5 NEWTONCOUNTYHIGHSCHOOL 130 273 2.1

NORTHWESTRANKINHIGHSCHOOL 418 1,026 2.5 SOUTHAVENHIGHSCHOOL 445 880 2.0

CLINTONHIGHSCHOOL 375 930 2.5 MERIDIANHIGHSCHOOL 339 669 2.0

WESTLAUDERDALEHIGHSCHOOL 164 418 2.5 WESTJONESJR‐SR

HIGHSCHOOL 219 432 2.0

DESOTOCENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 447 1,056 2.4 GAUTIERHIGHSCHOOL 210 424 2.0

BRANDONHIGHSCHOOL 417 999 2.4 BROOKHAVENHIGHSCHOOL 184 367 2.0

OXFORDHIGHSCHOOL 333 809 2.4 TISHOMINGOCOHIGHSCHOOL 151 297 2.0

TERRYHIGHSCHOOL 307 741 2.4 RAYMONDHIGH

SCHOOL 148 294 2.0

SAINTMARTINHIGHSCHOOL 307 732 2.4 FORRESTCOUNTYAHS 143 281 2.0

LAURELHIGHSCHOOL 209 499 2.4 MOSSPOINTHIGHSCHOOL 143 280 2.0

EASTCENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 175 413 2.4 RICHLANDATTENDANCECENTER 142 286 2.0

VANCLEAVEHIGHSCHOOL 172 407

2.4 CARTHAGEHIGHSCHOOL 137 272 2.0

HERNANDOHIGHSCHOOL 300 688 2.3 NEWALBANYHIG HSCHOOL 135 272 2.0

PEARLHIGHSCHOOL 294 673 2.3 LOUISVILLEHIGHSCHOOL 132 268 2.0

RIDGELANDHIGHSCHOOL 257 587 2.3 GULFPORTHIGHSCHOOL 386 746 1.9

CENTERHILLHIGHSCHOOL 252 577 2.3

 SOUTHPAN OLAHIGHSCHOOL 289 563 1.9

CORINTHHIGHSCHOOL 148 341 2.3 JIMHILLSENIORHIGHSCHOOL 267 516 1.9

SUMRALLHIGHSCHOOL 139 325 2.3 COLUMBUSHIGHSCHOOL 245 477 1.9

STARKVILLEHIGHSCHOOL 347 757 2.2 FORESTHILLHIGHSCHOOL 244 470 1.9

MURRAHHIGHSCHOOL 342

743 2.2 GRENADAHIGHSCHOOL 241 454 1.9

DIBERVILLEHIGHSCHOOL 309 685 2.2 WAYNECOUNTYHIGHSCHOOL 234 433 1.9

HANCOCKHIGHSCHOOL 306 681 2.2 WESTPOINTHIGHSCHOOL 228 433 1.9

GEORGECOUNTYHIGHSCHOOL 301 653 2.2 LAKECORMORANTHIGHSCHOOL 225 438 1.9

HATTIESBURGHIGH

SCHOOLBLAIR 237 525 2.2 SOUTHJONESHIGHSCHOOL 193 365 1.9

CANTONHIGHSCHOOL 209 461 2.2 FLORENCEHIGHSCHOOL 188 362 1.9

GREENWOODSENIORHIGHSCHOOL 162 362 2.2 MCCOMBHIGHSCHOOL 165 312 1.9

NORTHEASTHIGHSCHOOL 154 335 2.2 POPLARVILLEHIGHSCHOOL 160 300 1.9

PASS

CHRISTIANHIGHSCHOOL 147 322 2.2 CLARKSDALEHIGHSCHOOL  160 299 1.9

BAYHIGHSCHOOL 138 306 2.2 MENDENHALLHIGHSCHOOL 156 290 1.9

TUPELOHIGHSCHOOL 488 1,038 2.1 GREENECOUNTYHIGHSCHOOL 142 263 1.9

BILOXIHIGHSCHOOL 453 950 2.1 HARRISONCENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 405 718 1.8

HORN

LAKEHIGHSCHOOL 325 695 2.1 ROBERTMCALLAWAYHIGHSCHOOL 253 453 1.8

PETALHIGHSCHOOL 309 634 2.1 PONTOTOCHIGHSCHOOL 205 373 1.8

WARRENCENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 306 631 2.1 LAFAYETTEHIGHSCHOOL 195 342 1.8

OLIVEBRANCHHIGHSCHOOL 272 583 2.1 NORTHEASTJONESHIGHSCHOOL

185 340 1.8

WESTHARRISONHIGHSCHOOL 268 550 2.1 STONEHIGHSCHOOL 177 317 1.8

PASCAGOULAHIGHSCHOOL 265 549 2.1 GREENVILLE‐WESTONHS‐GHS 347 575 1.7

PEARLRIVERCENTRALHIGHSCH 262 562 2.1 VICKSBURGHIGHSCHOOL 254 442 1.7

SALTILLOHIGHSCHOOL 238 509 2.1 NATCHEZHIGH

SCHOOL 214 373 1.7

LONGBEACHSENIORHIGHSCHOOL 234 495 2.1 JACOBJMCCLAINHIGHSCHOOL 207 355 1.7

NESHOBACENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 224 473 2.1 CLEVELANDCENTRALHIGHSCHOOL 137 232 1.7

PICAYUNEMEMORIALHIGHSCHOOL 219 457 2.1 ITAWAMBACOAGRHIGHSCHOOL 136 230 1.7

NEW

HOPEHIGHSCHOOL 195 415 2.1 PROVINEHIGHSCHOOL 269 421 1.6

NORTHPIKEHIGHSCHOOL 188 393 2.1 OSCARHWINGFIELDHIGHSCHOOL 165 260 1.6

GENTRYHIGHSCHOOL 163 341 2.1 LANIERHIGHSCHOOL 136 220 1.6



SHANNONHIGHSCHOOL 136 204 1.5



6|Page



AverageNumberofTests

1

NumberofTestsPerStudent



 

AveragenumberoftestspercountyfromFebruary2012throughNovember2019.

TheaverageMississippihighschoolstudenttakestheACT2.2times.

7|Page



ACTCompositeDistributionforHighestandSuperscoreCompositeScores

 



ACTCompositeScoreandPercentChange



ThischartillustratestheimpactofsuperscoringcompositescoresbyindividualACTscore.Thefiguressuggestsuperscoringwill

resultinanupwardshiftofscores,startingat21andgraduallyincreasingasscoresincrease.

250

500

750

1000

1250

1500

1750

2000

2250

2500

2750

3000

3250

3500

3750

‐2.6

‐3.8

‐8.3

‐13.3

‐12.5

‐6.3

‐2.6

0.1

‐0.8

0.4

1.1

3.2

8.1

5.3

8.9

10.6

7.9

6.6

11.1

11.6

29.7

28.7

37.2

35.3

90.5

HIGH SUPER

8|Page



HowdoesACTSuperscoring impactfinancialaid?



MESG(MississippiEminentScholarsGrant)–StudentsareeligibleforMESGafterearningahigh

schoolcumulativegradepointaverageof3.5ona4.0scaleandscoreaminimumof29onthe

ACT.Thefollowingtablesuggestsabout456additionalstudentswillbeeligibleforMESGfrom

superscoring:



HIGHEST SUPERSCORE GY2017 GY2018 GY2019 GY2020 AVERAGE

25 29 0 0 2 0 0.5

26 29 13 10 13 5 10.3

 30 1 1 0 0 0.5

27 29 77 109 116 78 95.0



30 10 14 15 3 10.5

 31 0 2 1 0 0.8

28 29 253 267 275 189 246.0



30 71 98 101 70 85.0



31 3 12 10 6 7.8

 32 0 1 0 0 0.3

TOTALS 428 514 533 351 456.5



Ifweassume70percentofthose456studentsremaininstate,theannualaveragedropsto319

students.TheannualawardforMESGis$2,500peryear.Thisindicatesthese319studentswill

costanadditional$797,500peryear.



Note:Thesefiguresdonotaccountforthe3.5highschoolGPArequirement.



HELP(HigherEducationLegislativePlan)–StudentsareeligibleforHELPafterearningahigh

schoolcumulativegradepointaverageof2.5ona4.0scaleandscoreaminimumof20onthe

ACT.Thefollowingtablesuggestsabout1,157additionalstudentswillbeeligibleforHELPfrom

superscoring:



HIGHEST SUPERSCORE GY2017 GY2018 GY2019 GY2020 AVERAGE

17 20 5 11 6 3 6.3

 21 0 1 1 0 0.5

18 20 191 179 160 109 159.8



21 5 8 9 5 6.8

 22 1 0 1 0 0.5

19 20 798 878 873 695 811.0



21 185 166 199 103 163.3



22 6 10 11 8 8.8

 23 0 1 1 0 0.5

TOTALS 1,191 1,254 1,261 923 1,157.3



Ifweassume90percentofthose1,157studentsremaininstate,theannualaveragedropsto

1,041students.HELPpaysfull‐tuitionwhichtypicallycosts$8,500peryearforstudentsattending

universitiesand$3,000peryearforstudentsattendingcommunitycolleges.Thisindicatesthese

1,041studentsatthe$3,000per

yearcommunitycollegeratewouldcostanadditional$3.1

millionperyear.



Note:Thesefiguresdonotaccountforthe2.5highschoolGPArequirement.



9|Page



WhataresomepolicyimplicationsforACTSuperscoring?



 GreaterdisparitiesinaverageACTscoresbetweenregionalandresearchinstitutions.

DatasuggeststudentswithhigherACTcompositescoreswillgenerallytaketheACT

moreoftenandbenefitfromhighersuperscoring.Thesestudentsaremorelikelyto

enrollinresearchinstitutions.



 GreaterdisparitiesinaverageACTscoresbetween

African‐Americanandotherethnic

groups.DatasuggestAfrican‐Am ericanstud entsarelesslikelytotaketheACTmore

thanthreetimesputtingthosestudentsatadisadvantagewhencomparedtostudents

fromotherethnicgroupswhoaremorelikelytotaketheACTmorethanthreetimes.

Thesedisparities

willextendintofinancialaidandotherprogramsandservicesusing

theACTcompositescore.



 Ifcurrentfinancialaidrequirementsareleftunchanged,morestudentswillbecome 

eligibleforscholarshipsandfinancialaid.Thisincludesstateaidprogramssuc has

MESGandHELP,includinginstitutionalfinancialaidprograms.These

additional

studentswillrequiremorefinancialaiddollars.



 Fewerstudentswillberequiredtotakeintermediatecoursesasdatasuggestthere will 

befewerACTcomposit e scoresbelow21.Manystudentswhowererequiredtotake

anintermediatecoursewillnowbeabletobypassthosecourseswithsuperscoring.



 ResearchfromACTsuggeststhesuperscoringoptionwillbeabetterpredictorof

collegesuccessforhighschoolstudentsasthesuperscoredcompositeprovidesabetter

overallindicatorofacademicability.



JimHood,Ph.D.

AssistantCommissionerforStrategicResearch

[email protected]$ 601.432.7011

