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Knowing can be a double-edged sword. Everyone wants to know when the news is good, but when the news is mixed – some good, some not-so-good – “knowing” can also be a mixed bag.

This year’s Condition of College and Career Readiness report found that overall scores for ACT-tested U.S. high school graduates were down slightly, but for students who took the ACT-recommended core curriculum, scores stayed steady.

The underlying message from these findings?

Rigorous courses matter. A strong curriculum, taught well by teachers and tackled with enthusiasm by students, results in young people being better prepared for college and career.

Historical Context

Those who have been reading our blog over the past several months are aware that this year is ACT’s 60th anniversary. It is hard to imagine a more appropriate antecedent to the just-released Condition report than the following excerpt from E.F. Lindquist’s 1958 list of requirements for an ideal college admissions exam.

Lindquist wrote that on his ideal test, “the advantage should obviously be given” to students who make the most of their “abilities in the school years preceding college. The examination should clearly constitute an incentive to elementary and high school students to work harder at the job of getting ready for college.”

To that end, Lindquist insisted his ideal test – which would soon become the ACT – must reinforce what students were being taught through high quality curricula. Per Lindquist:

The best way of preparing for the examination and the best way of preparing for college should be identical. The best “coaching” procedure should be the same as the best instructional procedures at the high school level.

Lindquist urged students, teachers, and society to take the results of tests seriously. As he wrote in 1966, he believed that when they knew how well they were doing, each group could use those insights to inform what they should do next to achieve education and workplace success.

Not only teachers, school administrators; and school board members, but pupils and parents; and the general public as well should, through these services, be better prepared to make the many educational decisions that are required of them.

Modern Recommendations

Lindquist’s aspirations and admonitions stand up remarkably well after 60 years. This year’s Condition report provides four recommendations for increasing the number of students who are ready for college and career when they graduate from high school:

1. Rigor: Ensure that all students take rigorous academic courses.

2. Personalization: Give educators the resources needed to personalize instruction according to each student’s individual needs.

3. Continuous improvement: Assess student learning and implement improvement strategies throughout each student’s educational careers.

4. Holistic education: Address the needs of the “whole learner,” particularly in essential noncognitive skills in social and emotional learning.

Knowing is not always easy, but it’s important. If we each do more of what we know is good for us, it is far more likely our shared stories will have the outcomes to which we all aspire.

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Some students buck the trend by taking rigorous courses in high school

“Our findings once again indicate that taking core courses in high school dramatically increases a student’s likelihood for success after graduation,” said ACT CEO Marten Roorda. “That’s why we need to ensure that all students of all backgrounds have access to rigorous courses and that we are supporting them not only academically, but socially and emotionally as well.”

In addition, Asian American students have actually improved their readiness over the past five years. This year, 62 percent met at least three of the four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks, unchanged from the past two years but up from 59 percent in 2015.

“While the data suggest that a growing number of U.S. high school graduates are inadequately prepared for success in college courses, it’s encouraging to see groups of students who are bucking that trend,” said Roorda.

Overall, 37 percent of ACT-tested graduates in the class of 2019 met at least three of the four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks (English, reading, math and science), showing strong college readiness. This is down slightly from 38 percent last year and 39 percent in 2017.

However, nearly as many—36 percent—did not meet any of the four benchmarks, a number that has increased over the past several years.

In contrast to math and English, readiness levels in both reading and science have fluctuated slightly in recent years, with overall trends relatively stable.

Academic readiness for first-year college coursework remains highest in English (59 percent), followed by reading (45 percent), math (39 percent) and science (36 percent).

Approximately 40 percent of ACT-tested 2019 graduates took the test as part of a state- or district-funded administration, where all students take the ACT on a school day. This is a trend that has been increasing since 2015, when only 27 percent of ACT-tested graduates took the test as part of a statewide or districtwide administration.

Other Findings

• The pool of students who take the ACT test continues to be diverse. Slightly more than half (52 percent) of 2019 graduates identified themselves as white, 16 percent as Hispanic/Latino, 12 percent as African American students, and 11 percent as another racial/ethnic group. The remaining 9 percent gave no response.
• College readiness levels remain alarmingly low for students from underserved populations (low-income, minority and/or first-generation college students); the large majority meet only one or none of the four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks.
• ACT awards fee waivers to hundreds of thousands of low-income high school students across the nation each year so they can take the ACT and access test prep programs for free, but more than a quarter of those fee waivers go unused.
• African American and, to a lesser degree, Hispanic students continue to lag behind their white and Asian American counterparts in terms of college readiness.
• 20 percent of graduates met or surpassed the ACT STEM Benchmark, which represents readiness for first-year courses typically required for a STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) major.
• 73 percent of graduates aspire to some form of postsecondary education, with 30 percent hoping to earn a graduate or professional degree and 6 percent aiming for an associate’s or vocational-technical degree.
• 41 percent of graduates likely have the foundational work readiness skills needed for more than nine out of 10 jobs recently profiled in ACT’s JobPro database. Those students earned an ACT composite score of 22 or higher, which corresponds with the Gold and Platinum levels of the ACT® WorkKeys® National Career Readiness Certificate® (NCRC®).

Recommendations

ACT’s report provides four recommendations to education stakeholders and policymakers to help ensure that all students are college and career ready when they graduate from high school:

1. Academic rigor: Ensure that all students take rigorous academic courses.

2. Personalized learning: Give educators resources to personalize instruction according to students’ individual needs.

3. Continuous improvement: Assess student learning and implement improvement strategies throughout students’ educational careers.

4. Holistic education: Ensure that students’ education is holistic and addresses the needs of the “whole learner,” particularly in essential social and emotional learning skills.

About the Report

The data are based on nearly 1.8 million 2019 graduates around the U.S.—52 percent of the graduating class—who took the ACT® test during high school.

The report includes ACT score results from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, including 13 states that required all students to take the ACT as part of their statewide testing programs and another six states that funded ACT testing on an optional basis. It also includes the results from more than 1,100 individual school districts across the country that administered the ACT to all students.

NOTE: National and state ACT Condition of College & Career Readiness 2019 reports are available on the ACT website at: www.act.org/condition2019.

For district- or school-specific score results, please contact the local school/district administration or your state department of education. ACT releases only national and state reports.

About the ACT Test

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When enough students have opportunities, our society changes for the better.

Our new, student-focused options for ACT test-takers are meant to meet the current generation of learners where they are—in a personalized, online environment.
Simply put, we are committed to opening every door possible to help today’s students succeed and leveling the playing field for all.

We introduced these options based on feedback from students, parents, teachers, counselors, administrators and higher education officials. Here’s what you should know:

1.) It’s about showing what students have learned.

These new options are designed to provide students with a better testing experience that encourages more personalization and choice. But the most important thing they do is create opportunities for deeper learning and content mastery with section retesting.

ACT Section Retesting allows students to retake one or more section (subject) tests once they have taken the full ACT test, rather than having to take the entire test again. This gives students the option to focus on areas that may need improvement and better master the content they need to succeed.

We are committed to providing everyone with the opportunity they deserve to show what they know and pursue their unique path to success.

In this vein, we are doubling the number of fee waivers we provide to students from low-income families. Students who currently test with a fee waiver will now receive a total of four fee waivers to use on a full ACT test or up to three section retests per waiver. It will be up to the student to decide how they would like to use their four waivers, as long as they have taken a full ACT test before they register for a section retest.

2.) Superscoring is the best, literally.

Superscoring—averaging the best section (subject) scores across test attempts to provide the highest ACT Composite—is an existing practice already used by many colleges and universities for admissions and scholarship decisions. The number of institutions that superscore continues to increase as more students choose to retest.

We have conducted research on section testing and superscoring across test administrations to ensure these new options are valid and reliable.

We know from research that:

• Scores from ACT section (subject) tests do not need to come from the same test administration to be predictive of college success.
• Students earn similar ACT section test scores when taking a test section first rather than the typical test position (e.g. reading first versus third), supporting the move to section retesting.
• Students taking ACT section tests on different days don’t earn higher than expected scores.
• Each ACT section test is a reliable measure and predictive of future success on its own.

These studies informed our decision to allow students to retake individual sections of the ACT. And our latest study on superscoring showed that it was more predictive of first-year college success than any other scoring method.

We believe these new ACT test options, combined, will help students reach their maximum potential, showcase their academic readiness, and put their best foot forward in the college admission process.

We continue to advocate for colleges and universities to dig into the data on superscoring to make the best decision for their institution. Students can determine if the college they’re applying to accepts superscores by visiting the college’s admissions page.



Senior Director of Validity & Efficacy Research, Krista Mattern, explains the ins and outs of superscoring.

3.) Online testing—we’ve been doing this for a while.

Our experience with online testing began in 2015 with our state and district testing program, and expanded last September when international test-takers began using computer-based ACT testing.

We know the ultimate benefit—faster score reporting—is important for students as they make decisions about their future. It’s also important for higher education institutions who use standardized test scores in admissions and scholarship decisions that scores are comparable regardless of test mode (paper versus online) in order to make “apples-to-apples” comparisons when evaluating applications from students across the country and around the world.

There are two primary reasons why we announced the online testing option one year in advance:

•  It allows students to take practice tests in an online format so they can decide if they prefer online or paper testing.
• It provides test centers administering the ACT on a national test date time to confirm their readiness.

4.) Same test; better experience.

Since ACT’s inception 60 years ago, we’ve believed in measuring what students know, based on what they’ve learned in the classroom. With our new options for students, the ACT test content, reliability and validity will not change. Only the administration and reporting methods will be different.

What’s important to know about these changes is that they all lead to more choices and a better experience for students, giving them greater opportunities to succeed. When our students succeed, our society will have a brighter future.

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Next week, ACT is hosting the 2019 ACT Workforce Summit in Charlotte, North Carolina. We’re excited to bring together workforce, business, education, and economic development experts to talk about building a highly-skilled, innovative workforce.

Whether you’re joining us in Charlotte or looking for event highlights from afar, social media is a great opportunity to follow along and connect with attendees and other experts in your field. Here are three tips to make the most of the event on social media:

1. Follow ACT and use the conference hashtag

You can find us on a several social media channels, but we’ll be covering the event live on Twitter. Follow @ACT and #ACTWorkforce to stay connected to conference happenings.

5️⃣ days until the 2019 ACT Workforce Summit!

Who's joining us in Charlotte? 🏁 pic.twitter.com/gxwmKfNVBt

— ACT (@ACT) October 23, 2019

2.  Share your expertise

We all have unique experiences with workforce development. Sharing your stories and best practices can help educate and inspire others.

3.  Have fun

We’re excited to offer two days of professional development! Whether you’re taking advantage of our pre-conference workshops, taking advantage of our Tuesday night leisure activities, or exploring Charlotte, enjoy your trip!

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ACT is much more than a college admissions test. In fact, our mission emphasizes the work we do to help people achieve education AND workplace success. We advocate for learners of all levels to pursue the education and career paths that work for them, whether they’re interested in attending a community college, enrolling in a four-year institution, pursuing a career and technical education, or jumping right into the workforce.

Dr. Walter Bumphus, president and CEO of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) and an ACT Board Member, recently reflected on the multiple pathways students can take to find success, and how ACT’s transformation will enable more students to learn, grow, and bloom in their field.

Read on for insights on the benefits of community college, how colleges are responding to the threat of automation displacing workers, and why the future of learning is lifelong learning:

1. ACT’s mission is about helping people achieve education and workplace success. What does education and workplace success mean to you?

Our association, the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), shares the mission of ACT. I believe that for many individuals community colleges are the on-ramp to the middle class. Research continues to show that individuals will need more than a high school diploma, but less than a bachelor’s degree to enter many high demand, high-quality professions. Two-year colleges offer diplomas, certificates, and associate degrees, which all position individuals to gain skills or upskill so that they can compete as a part of the 21st-century workforce. Education and workplace success mean that individuals have the skills and competence necessary for jobs that lead to family-sustaining wages. It also means that these same individuals have been positioned to build on the initial credential that they obtain to further their education, which will also result in increased wages.

2. Why is it important for students to understand that there are “multiple pathways” to success?

There is no single path by which students must travel to meet their goals. A diverse body of voices and stories must be shared by educational providers and advocates to educate and adequately support the communities that we serve. In the two-year sector, the average age of a community college student is 28. Of the 41% of students enrolled in community colleges, 15% are single parents and 29% are first-generation college students. Most work full-time or part-time, so unlike traditional college-aged students that can take a full course load of 12-to-15 credit hours per semester, the “new traditional” student cannot. Educational experiences must be flexible and offered when and where students want, whether it is digitally, in-person, or through hybrid engagement. In large part, our colleges are doing this work, but when individuals are supporting their families, and they do not have direct familial guidance on how to navigate the education process, they may not know that their goal can become reality. It’s our job to tell those stories.

3. What advantages do students find when selecting a community college?

First and foremost, community colleges remain a high-quality, affordable option for completing the first two years of a degree. Across the country, community colleges have worked with their four-year counterparts to establish stronger course and degree articulation. Over the last seven years community colleges have been redesigned so that individuals pursuing a degree are guided through structured paths ensuring they take only the courses needed for their chosen credential. Community colleges provide access to advisors and have required more touchpoints in an individual’s academic career to ensure that they remain on track toward their educational goal. The student-to-instructor ratio remains smaller than that of four-year institutions, which allows for more individualized engagement. Some community colleges have also initiated zero textbook cost degrees, which addresses the still skyrocketing costs of textbooks, another major affordability issue.

4. With the threat of automation displacing American workers, what can educators and higher ed leaders do to prepare learners for the workforce of the future?

Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the nature of work and the workforce, requiring community and technical colleges to restructure programs to meet employers’ demand for new skill sets. Colleges are working to meet these needs by developing certificates that demonstrate competencies in IT, informatics, software development, and technology administration.

Partnerships are becoming more important and more universal. Community colleges are working within their local service areas, but partnerships with companies like Apple, Amazon, Cisco, and Dell are necessary to advance these programs in data analytics, cloud computing and emerging technologies.

Most importantly, we need to recognize that future learning will be lifelong learning. Rapid advances in technology will continue to grow exponentially and we must be sure that students learn how to learn in this new environment.

While the landscape of the nation’s labor market may change, what won’t change is the need for human brain power. Creativity and empathy are inherently human, and unequivocally necessary in the workplace. Community colleges are adapting their teaching based upon the needs of industry to focus not only on technical skills, but to teach students critical thinking, creativity, leadership, teamwork, etc.

One example is Ivy Tech Community College in Indiana. The college has partnered with the Smart Automation Certification Alliance, and other community colleges and businesses to develop certificates that demonstrate competencies in IT-focused industry 4.0 skills. Ivy Tech is also collaborating with Salesforce to train students for a Salesforce developer or administrator certification, qualifying them for 300,000 positions among the company’s partner employers. In 2020, Ivy Tech will introduce new certificates into its informatics and software development associate degrees.

5. Which aspect of ACT’s transformation do you find most inspiring, helpful or relevant to solving these issues?

I appreciate that ACT has been reflective and proactive about how it continues to serve educators and students. Providing research and data is so helpful in doing to the day-to-day job of being an administrator. But, more than that, ACT worked to revamp and revise its own products and how those products impact student and institutional success. That work brings substantive and needed change to educational practices. ACT has put its money where its mouth is in order to advance student success. That is inspirational for any leader!
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Looking to learn more about our workforce solutions? We provide opportunities for business, education and workforce advocates to join together to foster vibrant partnerships, sustain a robust workforce and make an impact on our communities through the ACT Workforce Summit.

The 2019 ACT Workforce Summit will take place from October 28-30 in Charlotte, North Carolina. Join us!

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Next school year, ACT will introduce individual section retesting, online testing on national test dates, and superscore calculations

IOWA CITY, Iowa—ACT, the maker of the ACT® test used in college admissions, today announced plans to introduce three new options to improve students’ test-taking experience and increase their opportunities for college admissions and scholarships.

Beginning with the September 2020 national ACT test date, students who have taken the ACT will have the option to retake individual sections of the ACT test instead of the entire exam.

Students will also have the choice of taking the ACT online, with faster test results, on national test dates, and those who take the test more than once will be provided an ACT “superscore” that calculates their highest possible ACT composite score.

“Students come first at ACT, and these groundbreaking new options will directly benefit them, providing more choices, an improved testing experience, and a better opportunity to showcase their readiness and reach their maximum potential,” said Suzana Delanghe, ACT chief commercial officer. “With these changes, ACT is evolving to meet students in the digital world in which they live. We want to do a better job of helping them succeed.”

New Options Address Student Needs

The three new options are based on feedback from students, parents, teachers, counselors, administrators and higher education officials and supported by the organization’s latest research and technology enhancements.

• ACT Section Retesting: For the first time in the 60-year history of the ACT test, students who have already taken the test will be allowed to retake individual ACT section tests (English, math, reading, science and/or writing), rather than having to take the entire ACT test again.
• Online testing with faster score results: Students will, for the first time, have the option of online or paper testing on national test days at ACT test centers (selected test centers initially, eventually expanding to all). The test is currently administered only on paper on national test dates. Online testing offers faster results compared to traditional paper-based administration—two days compared to around two weeks.
• ACT superscoring: ACT will report a superscore for students who have taken the ACT test more than once, giving colleges the option to use the student’s best scores from all test administrations, rather than scores from just one sitting, in their admission and scholarship decisions. New ACT research suggests that superscoring is actually more predictive of how students will perform in their college courses than other scoring methods.

The content and format of the ACT test itself will not change. Only the administration and reporting methods will be different.

“The ACT test will remain the same valid, reliable indicator of student readiness for success in college that it has always been—one that is based on 60 years of research and measures what’s taught in the classroom,” said Delanghe. “Our research shows that ACT scores for students who take individual section tests are consistent with those earned when they take the entire test. We are simply offering new ways to take the ACT, saving students time and giving them the ability to focus only on subject areas needing improvement.”

ACT is leveraging its years of experience with online testing in its plan to offer an online testing option on national test dates. ACT online testing is already used by some states and school districts that administer the test to all students as well as in all international ACT test centers.

“These new options are breakthroughs based on research and the latest technological capabilities, as the testing industry moves into the 21st century,” said Delanghe. “Colleges rely on multiple measures of student readiness for success, including high school grades, courses taken and, of course, test scores. ACT scores are the best way to ensure colleges have a fair, valid and consistent standard by which to measure the readiness of students from across the country and around the world.”

Assisting Learners with Free Test Prep Resources

ACT will continue to offer students free learning and test prep resources through its online ACT Academy. Students will be able to take a free practice online test to help them determine if they prefer this format or the traditional paper format. And all materials will be updated to support understanding of the new options available to students.

ACT will continue its fee waiver program for students from low-income households, providing free testing for the entire test or for individual section tests as well as continuing to offer free test prep and free score reporting to support their college and scholarship applications.

More details are available online at www.act.org/morechoices. Additional details about the rollout of these options, including pricing information, will be announced in the months ahead.

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IOWA CITY, Iowa—Tina Gridiron, a leader in higher education and philanthropy, will join ACT’s Center for Equity in Learning as vice president of philanthropic partnerships. Gridiron will cultivate and secure external philanthropic partners to help the Center close gaps in equity, opportunity and achievement for learners from underserved backgrounds.

“We are incredibly excited to have Tina on our team to help us address issues of equity in education and workforce success; to foster community engagement with our school, district and nonprofit partners; to deepen relationships with leaders in philanthropy and school improvement; and to close gaps in student access and achievement,” said Jim Larimore, chief officer for ACT’s Center for Equity in Learning. “Tina has extensive experience and demonstrated success leading, managing and building teams that will extend the Center’s work to help more students achieve success.”

Gridiron is founder and lead consultant of TLG Solutions, a consulting firm that increases the impact and influence of organizations promoting the public good. Over the last year, she has also served as a senior advisor to The Giving Practice, a network of consultants who promote, facilitate and inspire effective philanthropy. Previously, Gridiron led grant initiatives as an officer and director for Lumina Foundation where she worked extensively with community colleges, minority-serving institutions and regional comprehensive institutions. Prior to that she served as the acting director of the Black Community Services Center at Stanford University.

“I have dedicated my professional career to advocating for and leading efforts to increase the postsecondary preparation, access, and success of all students, and I am honored to continue this work with ACT’s Center for Equity in Learning,” said Gridiron.

In addition to her professional roles in higher education, Gridiron has served on several philanthropic boards including Grantmakers for Education and Indiana Connected by 25. She is currently an external committee member to the Greater Texas Foundation Board of Directors, immediate past chair for the Indiana Philanthropy Alliance board of directors and board chair for The Oaks Academy.

Gridiron holds a Master of Arts in higher education administration and a Master of Arts in sociology, both from Stanford, and earned a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of California, Berkeley. She currently lives in Indianapolis, Indiana.

Gridiron will begin her duties at ACT on October 7.

About ACT’s Center for Equity in Learning

ACT’s Center for Equity in Learning focuses on closing gaps in equity, opportunity and achievement for underserved populations and working learners. Through purposeful investments, employee engagement, and thoughtful advocacy efforts, the Center supports innovative partnerships, actionable research, initiatives, campaigns, and programs to further ACT’s mission of helping people achieve education and workplace success. http://equityinlearning.act.org

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