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From 1999 to 2003, the Moore County schools reduced the percentage of the senior population taking the SATs from 54.6 percent to 46.5 percent. This is a reduction of 14.8 percent.

From 1999 to 2003, Moore County schools increased their SAT scores from 954 to 1044, an increase of 9.4 percent.

I dare say that statistically you probably could conclude that we actually had no improvement in our SAT scores based on the big reduction in students taking the test. You can’t just state the average test scores and conclude improvement in the schools because of the test scores alone. The percent of the senior population taking the test has to be factored in.

From 1999 to 2003, the state of North Carolina increased the percentage of the senior population taking the SATs from 61 percent to 68 percent an increase of 11.4 percent.

From 1999 to 2003, the state of North Carolina increased their SAT scores from 986 to 1001, an increase of 1.5 percent.

I am not a statistician, but I would hazard a guess that North Carolina with the extremely high percentage of seniors taking the SAT test actually did as well as or possibly better than Moore County. North Carolina had 46.2 percent more seniors taking the test than Moore County and Moore County SAT scores were only 4.2 percent higher than the entire state of North Carolina.

The superintendent has not been good for the Moore County School system. If he is, as The Pilot states, a shaker-upper, all he did was shake the numbers around, and he bamboozled the board. We should all remember our departing superintendent as the great manipulator, but not with reverence.

Ralph Redmond

Pinehurst