Wisconsin ACT scores drop below national average

MADISON — Wisconsin's average score on the ACT college entrance exam dropped below the national average in the first year that all graduating seniors took the test.

Wisconsin's average 20.5 score is below the national average of 20.8. The state score is down 1.7 points from last year when 73 percent of seniors took the exam.

The state's 2016 score is fourth highest among the 18 states where all graduates were tested and 11th highest among states where more than half of students took it. Among all states, Wisconsin ranked 29th.

Wisconsin's test scores had been among the highest, and above the national average, for years before a new state law that took effect in 2015 required all 11th graders to take the exam. Given that change, the scores were expected to drop.