The state recently got its first report card back on its decision to use the Scholastic Assessment Test – commonly known as tthe SAT – for high school juniors to meet the standards of the No Child Left Behind Act.

As expected, the move lowered the state’s overall averages on the test, because 95 percent of juniors are taking it now, as opposed to 73 percent in previous years. However, state education officials say scores didn’t drop as much as they had expected.

Maine education officials, particularly Education Commissioner Susan Gendron, should be applauded for being the first state in the country to use the SAT in place of a local standardized test – in this case the Maine Educational Assessment. Although the transition hasn’t been completely free of trouble, students should benefit from it in the long run.

As expected, some educators criticized the state for using the SAT in place of the MEAs. The Maine Counseling Association and the American Counseling Association both argued the SAT was an inappropriate test to use because it was designed to test students’ aptitudes for college, not how well they were meeting the state’s goals – the Maine Learning Results.

While that’s a valid objection Maine and others that follow will want to consider as they adapt the tests to meet their needs, it would seem that what Maine is trying to teach students and what colleges are looking for in them couldn’t be that far apart. If they were, that itself would be cause for concern.

An independent review of how well the test aligned with the state’s standards, conducted by Norman Webb of the Wisconsin Center for Education Research, found the state need to add just one question to the reading section of the SAT and 11 questions to the math section.

The state hired Webb after being criticized for failing to get an independent review of how well the SAT would align with the state’s goals. The state had originally been relying on the opinion of the College Board, which administers the test.

That criticism was also valid. The College Board can’t be expected to give a neutral opinion on a decision that could bring big contracts. Maine signed a $1 million contract with the College Board to administer the test to Maine juniors, and other states, like Michigan and Kentucky, appear poised to follow.

However, after federal officials threatened financial penalties, the independent review, which was fast-tracked in response to the criticism, showed the College Board’s assessment wasn’t far off the mark. Federal officials are now encouraging Maine to use the SAT, according to Gendron.

That’s good news for Maine students. Because of this change, many more students will be taking the SAT. Some of those students might just discover it’s worth considering a college education after all.

Going to college might not be for everyone. After high school, many students are better off doing something like volunteering, traveling or learning a trade for a year or two. However, in a society where a college degree has become what a high school diploma was a half-century ago, finding out how prepared all students are for college should be mandatory.

Brendan Moran, editor