Garrett says 1990s reforms paying off

(Oklahoma City-AP) -- State Superintendent Sandy Garret says Oklahoma's A-C-T scores are up again, which is proof that the reforms of the 1990s are paying off.

An A-C-T spokeswoman says no other state in the nation, with a similar amount of students and testing a majority of graduating seniors, has made the gains Oklahoma has this year.

A record 27-thousand-850 students in Oklahoma's class of 2000 took the A-C-T. Their average composite score of 20-point-8 is point-2 points higher than last year.

The national average was 21-point-zero for the fourth year in a row.

Oklahoma's A-C-T score has increased point-8 since 1990, double the increase nationally.

Garrett says no southern state scored higher than Oklahoma on the A-C-T in 2000. She says the state's English test score exceeded the national average for the first time ever.

Garrett says the challenge for educators is to increase the mathematics score. The state's score of 19-point-9 is well below the national average of 20-point-7.