# 18/36 on 7th grade ACT Writing - above average?

**URL:** <https://experthub.prepscholar.com/t/18-36-on-7th-grade-act-writing-above-average/7390>\
**Category:** Answers\
**Tags:** early-achievers, act-writing, act-scores, act\
**Created:** [December 2, 2015, 7:32am UTC](https://experthub.prepscholar.com/t/18-36-on-7th-grade-act-writing-above-average/7390 "2015-12-02T07:32:00Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Laura\_PrepScholar](https://experthub.prepscholar.com/user_avatar/experthub.prepscholar.com/laura_prepscholar/32/15_2.png) [@Laura\_PrepScholar](https://experthub.prepscholar.com/u/Laura_PrepScholar)\
**Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 7:32am UTC](https://experthub.prepscholar.com/t/18-36-on-7th-grade-act-writing-above-average/7390/1 "2015-12-02T07:32:00Z")

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My 7th grade son took the ACT with Writing and got a 18/36 on the Writing section. Is this score above average?

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**Author:** ![Laura\_PrepScholar](https://experthub.prepscholar.com/user_avatar/experthub.prepscholar.com/laura_prepscholar/32/15_2.png) [@Laura\_PrepScholar](https://experthub.prepscholar.com/u/Laura_PrepScholar)\
**Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 7:42am UTC](https://experthub.prepscholar.com/t/18-36-on-7th-grade-act-writing-above-average/7390/2 "2015-12-02T07:42:37Z")

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Because the new ACT Writing scoring scale is so new, it's difficult to say for certain where your son's score falls. My best estimation is that **an average score for high schoolers on the new ACT Writing is going to be around a 20 or 21 out of 36** , which would make your son's essay score **above average** for his age.

Sources: Dr. Fred Zhang's article on [what a good 7th grade ACT score is](https://blog.prepscholar.com/whats-a-good-7th-grade-act-/-sat-score) as well as my own research into ACT Writing scoring (more on [average ACT Writing scores here](https://blog.prepscholar.com/whats-an-average-act-writing-score)).

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**Author:** ![Laura\_PrepScholar](https://experthub.prepscholar.com/user_avatar/experthub.prepscholar.com/laura_prepscholar/32/15_2.png) [@Laura\_PrepScholar](https://experthub.prepscholar.com/u/Laura_PrepScholar)\
**Post date:** [April 4, 2016, 9:39am UTC](https://experthub.prepscholar.com/t/18-36-on-7th-grade-act-writing-above-average/7390/3 "2016-04-04T09:39:24Z")

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UPDATED ANSWER: **Yes, an 18/36 is an above-average ACT Writing score for a 7th grader.** Based upon the information ACT, Inc. has released about [percentile norms](https://www.act.org/content/dam/act/unsecured/documents/NormsChartSTEMELAWriting-Web2015-16.pdf#page=1&zoom=auto,-22,641) on the new ACT Writing, the [average ACT Writing score](https://blog.prepscholar.com/whats-an-average-act-writing-score) (for all students) is between a 16 and a 17 out of 36.

Based on [analysis done by PrepScholar co-founder Dr. Fred Zhang](https://blog.prepscholar.com/whats-a-good-7th-grade-act-/-sat-score), we know that 7th grade ACT scores are about 10 points lower than those of a high school student. While the [scoring issues with ACT Writing](https://blog.prepscholar.com/new-act-writing-score-low-wrong-late) make predictions a little more difficult to make, I feel confident in stating that **an 18/36 is an excellent ACT Writing score for a 7th grader** (considering it's above the average ACT Writing score for all students, including high schoolers!).