Math is an important subject and it rests at the core of many careers in the emerging STEM fields. Understanding the broad disciplines of math is not easy in any capacity, yet math scores can determine the course of any given student’s future path.
At Learner, we understand both the difficulty and the necessity of math as a subject and wanted to know what math looks like in the United States. We took a look at the average SAT math scores throughout the nation to find which states had the highest and the lowest. Check out the map and additional findings below to see how your state stacks up against the rest!
The states with the highest math scores are:
- Minnesota
- North Dakota
- Kansas
- Iowa
- Nebraska
- Utah
- Wisconsin
- South Dakota
- Montana
- Wyoming
The states with the lowest math scores are:
- Florida
- Idaho
- Delaware
- West Virginia
- District of Columbia
- New Mexico
- Rhode Island
- Texas
- Illinois
- South Carolina
- Oklahoma
Interesting Data Findings
- Minnesota took the top spot with the highest average math score in the nation at 636, which is 106 points above the benchmark score of 530
- The difference between the highest score (Minnesota) and the lowest score (Florida) is 156 points
- Florida has the lowest math score in the U.S. at 50 points below the benchmark, with an average score of 480
- Although Minnesota has the highest average score overall, North Dakota has a higher percentage of students meeting the math benchmark for the SAT
- Florida may have the lowest average score, but West Virginia comes in last in terms of students meeting the benchmark with only 32% scoring at or above the required score
Methodology
We gathered data surrounding the math scores of each individual state from the 2021 SAT Suite Results from the College Board to determine which had the highest and lowest scores. In addition, we collected the percentage of students from each state that met or exceeded the benchmark math score for the SAT, which is 530, to further understand the correlation between each state’s average math score and meeting benchmark expectations.
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