Shelby County School students are doing well, according to the latest Standard Achievement Test Scores.

The scores released by the state board of education indicate that Shelby County students in grades three through eight consistently ranked among the top 10 compared to the 67 county school systems in Alabama.

In fact, Shelby County Schools ranked first in several categories.

Compared to other county school systems across the state, third grade students ranked third in reading, fourth in language and 10th in math.

In grade four, county students ranked first in reading, first in language, second in math and fourth in science.

Also compared to other county schools, Shelby County fifth graders ranked first in reading and third in science; sixth graders ranked fourth in language, fifth in reading and seventh in math; seventh graders ranked first in reading and first in science; and eighth graders ranked first in language, second in reading, third in science and third in math.

Shelby County School Board member Trey Ireland wrote of the results, &uot;Although we are very proud of these SAT scores, which clearly show that countywide our students are receiving an excellent education when compared to other county systems, we cannot ignore the test scores in a few of our schools which must improve.

&uot;Our goal is to provide the best educational opportunities possible to the children of Shelby County at every school in every neighborhood.&uot;

Dead average is considered a percentage of 50, according to

Shelby County School officials.

Shelby County percentages on the SAT are as follows: grade three, 62 percent in reading, 61 percent in math and 66 percent in language; grade four, 71 percent in reading, 71 percent in language, 67 percent in math and 65 percent in science; grade five, 64 percent reading and 65 percent in science; grade six, 67 percent in language, 67 percent in math and 61 percent in reading; grade seven, 64 percent in reading and 74 percent in science; and grade eight, 69 percent in language, 62 percent in math, 61 percent in reading and 71 percent in science.

By way of comparison, the Greene County Schools scored well below average in grade three at 23 percent in reading, 23 percent in math and 34 percent in language.

It should be noted that the 74 percent for seventh grade science posted by Shelby County Schools was the highest percentage for any county school system in any of the compared categories.

Other Shelby County top rankings included the fourth grade percentage for reading and language (tied with Covington County), the fifth grade score for reading, the seventh grade score for reading and the eighth grade score for language