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IOWA CITY, Iowa — Roughly half of high school students report using popular AI tools, according to a new report released today by ACT, the nonprofit organization that administers the college readiness exam. Students who do not use the tools seem to be more skeptical of the technology.

“In today’s increasingly digital age, we know that student use of AI tools is of interest to families and teachers alike,” ACT CEO Janet Godwin said. “This new research gives us a better understanding of how students really feel about using these tools in the classroom and how it affects their work. Students are already exploring how they can use AI, but there is real skepticism about AI’s ability to create work in which students can be confident.”

Just under half (46%) of students in grades 10 to 12 said they used tools like ChatGPT, Dall-E 2, Bing Chat, and others on a combination of school and non-school assignments at the time of the survey.

Among students who did not use AI tools, no interest in these tools was the top reason for not using them. About two-thirds of students also reported that they did not trust the information provided by AI tools, and a little more than half indicated that they did not know enough about AI tools to use them. “Occasionally they will put things in that [are] just wrong … I don’t trust AI,” one student wrote.

“A majority of the students who didn’t use AI tools were either uninterested in or distrusted the results that the tools provided,” explained Jeff Schiel, a lead research scientist at ACT and one of the authors of the report. “Even students who used the tools for school assignments found that they were far from perfect, as a majority reported errors or incorrect information within the responses that AI provided. This shows that as knowledge and awareness of AI tools grows, information about how to use them correctly is just as important.”

Students with higher ACT Composite scores were more likely to use AI tools than those with lower scores. In addition, students with lower scores were considerably more likely to report not using AI tools because they did not have access to them or did not know enough about them, compared to students with higher scores.

“As AI matures, we need to ensure that the same tools are made available to all students, so that AI doesn’t exacerbate the digital divide,” Godwin said. “It’s also imperative that we establish a framework and rules for AI’s use, so that students know the positive and negative effects of these tools as well as how to use them appropriately and effectively.”

The report is based on the responses to a June 2023 ACT survey from 4,006 students in grades 10 to 12.

Key findings:

ACT established the ACT Scholars program to nurture the academic talent of graduate and community college students at the University of Iowa and Kirkwood Community College, respectively. ACT emphasized scholarships for students from populations for which the cost of higher education could have presented a significant barrier to college access and accomplishments.

To commemorate their journey from application to graduation, ACT has invited these scholars to share their stories. Lauren Carr is an Asian American student at Kirkwood Community College. She graduated from Warsaw High School in Warsaw, Illinois, with the full intent of a successful life after college.

What are you studying? What degree do you plan to earn?

My program of study at Kirkwood Community College is dental assisting. The dental assisting program has taught me more than I could’ve imagined while choosing my major. All of my professors and classmates have been amazing and driven toward success, and I cannot thank them enough for teaching me the skills needed for this career choice. I plan to graduate at the end of the fall term in 2023 and further my career as a dental assistant in Iowa.

What was your motivation for going to college?

My motivation for college was my family and my passion for the dental field. I saw college as an opportunity to make a difference in the community by helping others have healthy, beautiful smiles. I plan to receive my associate’s of applied science (AAS) and become a registered dental assistant (RDA) by graduation. I selected dental assisting as my area of study because of my passion for the dental field, and I believe that a smile can brighten anyone’s day.

Who inspired or supported you on your college-going journey?

My parents have played an incredible role in helping me throughout this journey through support, love, and having someone to talk to.

What is the biggest challenge you have faced as a first-generation college student, and how did you work to overcome it?

My biggest challenge throughout this journey would be the stress of working 30-hour weeks while being a full-time college student and trying to get through a 64.5-credit-hour program. Working 30 hours a week and trying to pay for college, rent, and necessities is difficult while being in school full time, but with the help of my family, friends, and Kirkwood’s amazing program and resources, I was able to get through this program.

What advice would you give to other first-generation college students?

My advice would be to have someone there for you through college because you may get homesick, stressed, and overwhelmed. As someone who went through that, having a support system was the best possible thing I could have, and that is what has gotten me through college. I have set goals for myself each week on homework to get done, how many hours I can get at work, and an end goal of graduating college with my AAS and RDA license. I plan to achieve my goals by getting homework done, studying, and realizing the end goal of college is to be successful in life after college.

What does the ACT scholarship mean to you? How does it affect your college-going journey?

This being my last semester in college, I need to focus on the end goal, and this scholarship helps me focus on that.

For Native American Heritage Month, ACT is pleased to feature student voices from the Virginia Tribal Education Consortium (VTEC) Native Youth Community Project (NYCP). VTEC is dedicated to serving Indigenous youth by addressing the college and career readiness needs of Native high school students nationwide. ACT’s Center for Equity in Learning and VTEC have worked together to eliminate barriers to academic support in Virginia's Tribal Nations through the Forward Academy – a set of programs and supports for college and career awareness, preparation, engagement, and success among students and their parents – and ACT’s American College Application Campaign (ACAC), which provides training for high schools hosting college application events, with a focus on first-generation college students and students from low-income families.

Jobs for the Future (JFF) is a national leader in advocating for equity in workforce success; this November, JFF announced that it had received a $20 million donation from MacKenzie Scott to launch its North Star fundraising campaign to help 75 million people facing systemic barriers work in quality jobs. In recent months, JFF President and CEO Maria Flynn engaged in conversations with ACT about strategies for improving postsecondary education and workforce equity, alignment, and success. Read on to learn from Maria about how certain populations are underserved by education and workforce systems, why career services and navigational supports need to be modernized, and the importance of intentionality and consistency in education and workforce success efforts.

How are people who are underserved by the education and workforce systems affected when those systems are not aligned?

Our education and workforce systems are inequitable, disconnected, and hard to navigate. That truth was the key driver behind the creation of Jobs for the Future 40 years ago — and it remains true today. Everything from funding streams to accountability systems to governance structures are fragmented, misaligned, and bureaucratic. Too often, rather than being centered on the needs of workers and learners, these systems are centered around the needs and capabilities of the systems themselves.

Here’s an example of what happens to people when systems are not aligned: Overall, the national unemployment rate remains historically low, but if you look at specific populations, you see huge disparities. Take New York City: The overall unemployment rate is about 5%. But broken down, unemployment rates are 17% for young people, 12.2% for Black/non-Hispanic people, 7.5% for Black, Indigenous, and people of color; and 1.3% for white/non-Hispanic people.

A recent JFF report argues that the U.S. needs to make systemic reforms and strategic investments to modernize career services and navigational supports. What does an effective, equitable career-planning services system look like for students and job seekers?

Career services is one of those areas where we need big, bold change to serve the needs of today’s learners and employers. Functionally, it’s not that different from when I was a student in 1989 and I walked into the career services office and pulled a paper tab off a bulletin board. That paper tab may now be an online listing, but the system is still highly transactional and focused on short-term solutions. And the results aren’t great, especially considering how much more college costs today: Just over half of the class of 2021 had full-time employment six months after graduation.

We see a two-part approach to modernizing career services: First, offer students access to tools and data that can help them identify promising career paths and in-demand skills based on field or region. Firms like Lightcast and AstrumU are already doing this work, which can help learners get beyond the one-time transaction system and consider how they can put their skills to use on a career pathway.

Second, and equally important, is expanding the system to recognize the breadth and depth of today’s learner population. Today’s students may be supporting families or working while they attend school; an effective, modern career-services system includes learn-and-earn opportunities, in-demand credential programs, and a range of opportunities that reflects the range of students seeking them.

What are the biggest ways in which leaders can be more intentional and consistent in their efforts to help people – especially students of color, first-generation students, and students from underinvested communities – successfully achieve both higher education and workforce success?

Intentionality is critical to equitable economic advancement, because our systems don’t create the conditions for equity on their own.

Data is a key starting point for any institution: What are the markers of success and key performance indicators, and where are the gaps in achieving those? Don’t make assumptions about what’s needed — instead, look at the information and see what needs it surfaces.

We recently kicked off a collaboration with Northern Virginia Community College to help connect Black learners to high-wage, high-demand careers, and it began with a comprehensive discovery process that yielded a lot of valuable insights about enrollment versus completion, accessibility of academic and career resources, and institutional use of career outcomes data. All of this led to a new strategic plan for the college that’s tailored to student needs and the local market.

Will you share a memorable moment from collaborating with colleagues on workforce development – one where you saw firsthand how this work affects people’s lives?

I’ll share two. First, at JFF’s 2023 Horizons summit, we heard from a fantastic group of Gen Z learners and workers about what they want the workforce of the future to look like. These young people came to us from all over the country and told us, bluntly, that they are not willing to inherit these broken systems. They highlighted how critical it is to center the voices of the learners and workers who are part of these systems and calling for change.

The other is from our Center for Justice and Economic Advancement, which works to eliminate systemic barriers for people with records and people who are currently incarcerated. They’ve launched a new advocacy framework and campaign called “Normalizing Opportunity,” and they have partnered to create beautiful pieces of art to celebrate icons and leaders in this effort. I was fortunate enough to meet the people portrayed when the artwork was unveiled, and they highlighted for me how much talent, drive, and passion are left on the table when we exclude people with records from the workforce. It reminded me how important this work is — for our systems and our economy, but also for the people at the heart of it.

Maria K. Flynn is president and CEO of Jobs for the Future (JFF), a national nonprofit that drives transformation of the U.S. education and workforce systems to achieve equitable economic advancement for all by designing solutions, scaling best practices, influencing policy and action, and investing in innovation. www.jff.org

Today is National STEM Day, an annual celebration dedicated to promoting science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education and careers for young learners. According to ACT data, not enough U.S. students are equipped for STEM opportunities — now or in the future. The current state of STEM readiness is cause for serious concern: Only 15% of students met the ACT STEM College Readiness Benchmark in 2023 — down from 20% just four years ago, in 2019.

The ACT STEM College Readiness Benchmark represents the level of readiness students need to have a 50% chance of earning a B or higher and about a 75% chance of earning a C or higher in typical first-year college STEM courses (for example, calculus, biology, chemistry, and physics). ACT research shows that, for STEM majors, STEM scores are positively related not only to succeeding in individual math and science courses but also to earning a cumulative grade point average of 3.0 or higher, persisting in a STEM major, and earning a STEM-related bachelor’s degree.

How can we boost STEM readiness? ACT research has identified some promising strategies. Taking rigorous science courses, including physics, in high school is vital to college readiness. Almost one-quarter of students taking at least three years of math or science met the STEM Benchmark, while only 2% to 6% of those who took no more than two years of math or science did so — a fourfold difference in science and more than an elevenfold difference in math.

Rigorous courses should be available to all students, not just those interested in earning an advanced STEM degree. However, in 2015, fewer than 50% of high-poverty high schools offered any physics courses, and only about 25% of high poverty high schools offered courses in computer science. This is a critical inequity because labor market projections point to strong growth in high- and middle-skill jobs, such as those in the healthcare professional and support services, financial operations, and computer and mathematical science fields. These occupations require more than a high school diploma but often less than a four-year STEM degree.

Entry into these occupations can be accelerated via high-quality dual enrollment programs through partnerships with local community colleges, four-year institutions, and business and industry. ACT uses the term “dual enrollment” to encompass early college high school, dual credit, and concurrent enrollment programs. But regardless of the name, all of these models allow students to earn college credit while still in high school. Research has demonstrated that students who earn postsecondary credits while simultaneously completing their high school diploma stay more engaged in the classroom and graduate at higher rates than their peers, and are also more likely to continue their education after high school to complete a recognized postsecondary credential.

Moreover, many dual enrollment programs in the technology and health fields are explicitly designed for — and with curricular input from — local employers. Such programs offer a unique opportunity for the business community to help better align K-12 and postsecondary education with workforce needs. States and local districts should invest in or seek public-private partnership opportunities to make access to such courses a reality for all students.

ACT will continue to provide these kinds of insights for students and organizations that support them so that we can work together and empower 20.2 million more learners to exit high school ready for postsecondary and work opportunities by 2032. Changing demographics demand that colleges and employers seek and engage a population that is increasingly diverse and mostly from low-income households. Our vision and aligned work will create solutions for a world of evolving opportunities and provide more support for learners to chart pathways toward greater mobility and economic prosperity.

By: Kelly Smith, senior content specialist, English Language Arts, and Tina Gridiron, vice president, ACT’s Center for Equity in Learning

At ACT, our true strength comes from sharing our expertise in research and analytics, and using this knowledge to create opportunities so that all students can fulfill their potential. That starts with making sure our tests include high-quality, valid assessments that reflect the material being taught in American classrooms.

In 2021 and 2022, the ACT English Language Arts content team initiated a series of roundtable discussions to examine equitable representation in ACT reading passages. The roundtable participants were some of the country’s leading educators and researchers, including reading and literacy experts, with extensive experience with student-centered perspectives on diverse representation. In each roundtable, panelists reviewed and provided feedback on potential passages considered for use in the ACT reading assessment.

“This roundtable series provided a rare opportunity to come together with colleagues who share various forms of expertise in education, and who often haven’t seen ourselves represented in affirming and nuanced ways in K-12 curriculum (and even less so in assessment materials),” said Betina Hsieh, a professor in the College of Education at California State University, Long Beach and one of the roundtable experts. “The project’s intentional focus on integrating texts with diverse perspectives that honor our increasingly diverse student body has the potential to make important shifts in the way we think about how authentic assessments can serve students.”

Roundtables focused on different identity groups.

The English Language Arts team identified select ACT reading passages for the panelists’ consideration. Each roundtable focused, respectively, on passages that center on authors and perspectives from one of four identity groups: Black; Latinx; Native American; and Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI).

We also identified the following areas of expertise as top priorities in selecting panelists:

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Today ACT, the nonprofit learning organization and provider of college and career readiness assessments, announced the appointment of Ricardo D. Torres to its board of directors. Torres will bring a wealth of knowledge and experience leading efforts to make education and training after high school more equitable, accessible, and successful for all learners.

“The entire team at ACT is excited to welcome a field leader like Rick to the board,” ACT CEO Janet Godwin said. “He has dedicated his career to actively pursuing the kinds of policies, practices, and mindsets that open doors and create more equitable opportunities for all students. His work aligns with ACT’s mission to help all people achieve education and workplace success, and we are honored that he will advise us as we continue our efforts to support learners and their champions.”

Torres, who is president and CEO of the National Student Clearinghouse, will serve a three-year term. He joined the Clearinghouse as its president and CEO in 2008. Under his leadership, the Clearinghouse has continued to successfully extend its mission delivery of access-driven service to education, providing accessible innovative technology-based services and data exchange solutions that enable education institutions and organizations to focus on being engines that maximize human potential development. Torres has served on the board of Brightpoint Community College, formerly John Tyler Community College, for 20 years, and he has served on the board of Achieving the Dream since 2021. Prior to joining the Clearinghouse, he had a long and distinguished career in the private sector, both in the U.S. and abroad, including serving as COO at BestPractices, a nationally recognized provider of emergency medicine and physician practice management, and Capital One, a financial services company. Torres has also held management positions in leading organizations such as PepsiCo and Philip Morris/Kraft Foods (now known as Altria Group). His diverse background includes financial and strategic planning, marketing and sales, general management, and executive leadership.


About ACT
ACT is a mission-driven, nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people achieve education and workplace success. Grounded in more than 60 years of research, ACT is a trusted leader in college and career readiness solutions. Each year, ACT serves millions of students, job seekers, schools, government agencies and employers in the U.S. and around the world with learning resources, assessments, research, and credentials designed to help them succeed from elementary school through career. Visit us at www.act.org.

Contact: Allie Ciaramella; allie.ciaramella@act.org

IOWA CITY, Iowa (Oct. 11, 2023) — The average Composite score on the ACT test fell to 19.5 for the class of 2023, a decline of 0.3 points from 2022, according to data released today by ACT, the nonprofit organization that administers the college readiness exam. The average scores in mathematics, reading, and science subjects were all below the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks for those subjects.

The ACT College Readiness Benchmarks are the minimum ACT test scores required for students to have a high probability of success in credit-bearing first-year college courses. ACT research continues to show that students meeting a benchmark on the test have approximately a 50% chance of earning a B or better and approximately a 75% chance of earning a C or better in the corresponding college course or courses.

“This is the sixth consecutive year of declines in average scores, with average scores declining in every academic subject,” ACT CEO Janet Godwin said. “We are also continuing to see a rise in the number of seniors leaving high school without meeting any of the college readiness benchmarks, even as student GPAs continue to rise and students report that they feel prepared to be successful in college. The hard truth is that we are not doing enough to ensure that graduates are truly ready for postsecondary success in college and career. These systemic problems require sustained action and support at the policy level. This is not up to teachers and principals alone – it is a shared national priority and imperative.”

The graduating class of 2023 were in their first year of high school when the COVID-19 pandemic reached the U.S. The proportion of “COVID cohort” seniors meeting none of the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks reached historic highs in 2023. Twenty-one percent of students met all four benchmarks, while 43% met none of these benchmarks. The percentage of students meeting all four benchmarks dropped 1.3 percentage points, from 22.1% in 2022 to 20.8% in 2023, whereas the percentage of students meeting no benchmarks increased by nearly two percentage points, from 41.6% in 2022 to 43.3% in 2023.

Key findings:

• The average Composite score declined by 0.3 points, from 19.8 in 2022 to 19.5 in 2023.
• Between 2022 and 2023, average English scores declined 0.4 points (from 19.0 to 18.6), average mathematics scores declined 0.3 points (from 19.3 to 19.0), average reading scores declined 0.3 points (from 20.4 to 20.1), and average science scores declined by 0.3 points (from 19.9 to 19.6).
• The percentage of students meeting all four benchmarks dropped 1.3 percentage points, from 22.1% of students in 2022 to 20.8% of students in 2023, whereas the percentage of students meeting no benchmarks increased by 1.7 percentage points, from 41.6% in 2022 to 43.3% in 2023.
• Roughly 1.4 million high school seniors took the ACT test, an increase over the 2022 graduating class.

About the Data
The data released include ACT test score results from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, including 16 states that required all students to take the ACT test as part of their statewide testing programs, and another seven states that funded ACT testing on an optional basis.

View the data via the dashboard.


About ACT
ACT is a mission-driven, nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people achieve education and workplace success. Grounded in more than 60 years of research, ACT is a trusted leader in college and career readiness solutions. Each year, ACT serves millions of students, job seekers, schools, government agencies, and employers in the U.S. and around the world with learning resources, assessments, research, and credentials designed to help them succeed from elementary school through career. Visit us at www.act.org.

Contact: ACT Media Relations; publicrelations@act.org

IOWA CITY, Iowa — Nearly nine in 10 (86%) college-bound high school seniors felt academically prepared for the rigors of college, according to survey results released today by ACT, the nonprofit organization that administers the college readiness exam. However, students also say they need more preparation for and insight into the college admissions process.

“Overall, students say they’re ready for the many challenges of college, but the admissions process remains confusing and opaque even for those who say they’re prepared,” ACT CEO Janet Godwin said. “Our research shows that college preparation activities help students feel more prepared, and that getting support in school makes a big difference. Integrating college preparation into the school day and making learning about the admissions process a normal part of high school will help more students find a path to and through college.”

ACT’s survey focused on the college and career preparation of students from the class of 2023, who were in their first year of high school when the COVID-19 pandemic reached the U.S. The results build on a recent ACT report on high school seniors in the “COVID cohort” who said the pandemic affected their college or career choices.

Overall, most high school seniors felt academically prepared, with a large majority (86%) feeling very or mostly prepared to earn Bs or higher grades in most college courses. A similar percentage (85%) rated themselves very or mostly prepared for keeping up with the work required in college, such as studying and attending classes and labs. Eight out of 10 students also felt very or mostly prepared for accessing academic resources such as the library and office hours.

But students said they wished they had received more support to better prepare for certain aspects of college, including expanded application information, timely preparation guidance, and direction on preparing application materials.

“I wish my school told every student the steps to applying to college with recommended deadlines. If a student didn’t go out of their way to attend a college app boot camp like I did, they don’t know all the steps to apply,” one high school senior shared. “I have to explain so many things to my friends who don’t have the information they need.”

Another added, “I wish we would have talked about college before senior year. We are just starting to talk about it and it’s almost time to apply but some people don’t even have any idea of where they want to go because they didn’t know where to look.”

“Though students say they’re prepared for college, they find the application process daunting, showing the critical role school counselors play in supporting students’ college preparedness,” Jill Cook, executive director of the American School Counselor Association (ASCA), said. “Collaborating with students, families, and teachers, school counselors work to ensure all students develop an academic and career plan reflecting their interests, abilities, and goals. They also help ensure students engage in rigorous, relevant coursework and experiences that support their postsecondary plans.”

Compared to academic, social, and personal preparedness, financial preparedness had relatively low ratings among high school seniors. Less than half (47%) reported they were very or mostly prepared when it came to being able to pay their tuition, and 49% felt very or mostly prepared for managing their own finances. About one-quarter of students (ranging from 21% to 26%) reported they were only slightly prepared or not prepared at all to accomplish financial tasks in their first year of college.

Visit Supports Key to the College Preparation of Students From the COVID Cohort to view the full report.

Key Findings:

• Most high school seniors felt academically prepared for college. A large majority (86%) felt very or mostly prepared for earning Bs or higher grades in most college courses.
• Students in urban areas were more likely than students in towns or rural areas to say that school staff helped them understand college application requirements.
• A majority of college-bound students felt socially and personally prepared. Almost two-thirds (64%) rated themselves very or mostly prepared for making friends during their first semester in college, and 63% reported that they were very or mostly prepared for finding an extracurricular activity that they wanted to do. More than three-quarters (77%) reported they were very or mostly prepared for applying the life skills necessary to succeed in college, such as doing laundry and shopping for food. About two-thirds (65%) felt very or mostly prepared for managing their time to meet multiple demands.
• Students taking four or more college credit-bearing courses in high school considered themselves more academically and personally prepared than students taking three or fewer of these types of courses. But 29% took fewer than four courses, and 11% took none. One out of five students from low-income families reported that they did not take any college credit-bearing courses, compared to one out of 10 students who were not from low-income families.
• Of the surveyed students who had taken a college credit-bearing course in high school, such as Advanced Placement (AP), International Baccalaureate (IB), or dual/concurrent enrollment, more than half took up to six credit-bearing courses.

Key Recommendations. ASCA and ACT’s American College Application Campaign (ACAC) provided recommendations for better supporting college-bound students based on the findings of this research study:

ASCA

• Incorporate timely college preparation guidance as part of regular course planning and provide students access to personalized college counseling and advising.
• Create a comprehensive postsecondary planning program that includes guidance on good-fit college, major, and career options.
• Build in discussions about good-fit choices during typical activities occurring throughout the school year, such as family-teacher conferences and career fairs.
• Expand and vary the delivery of college preparation supports to afford students more opportunities to obtain college application and related information that resonates with them.
• Incorporate peer-to-peer mentoring opportunities to give seniors the chance to share their college and career planning experiences with younger students.

ACAC

• Create opportunities during the school day for all juniors to develop a preliminary college list.
• Help prepare college applications and help every senior create an application checklist.
• Provide time and space for all seniors to complete and submit their college applications and schedule application activities in the fall of senior year, during the school day.

About ACT
ACT is a mission-driven, nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people achieve education and workplace success. Grounded in more than 60 years of research, ACT is a trusted leader in college and career readiness solutions. Each year, ACT serves millions of students, job seekers, schools, government agencies and employers in the U.S. and around the world with learning resources, assessments, research, and credentials designed to help them succeed from elementary school through career. Visit us at www.act.org.

Contact: Allie Ciaramella; allie.ciaramella@act.org

On June 29, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down the use of race as a factor in college admissions decisions. In July, shortly after the decision was made, ACT asked Art Coleman, managing partner and co-founder of EducationCounsel LLC, to speak to key issues that have emerged as a result. Watch the interview here.

In part two of our video series with Coleman, he discusses some key takeaways within the Supreme Court’s decision. He focused on several things college and university leaders can do to move ahead, including:

• Leading through adversity.
• Thinking creatively and being innovative.
• Working to achieve institutional diversity, equity, and inclusion goals.
• Updating admissions practices.
• Moving ahead with financial aid, scholarship, and recruitment practices.

About Art: Art Coleman is a managing partner and co-founder of EducationCounsel LLC. He provides policy, strategic, and legal counseling services to national nonprofit organizations, postsecondary institutions, school districts and state agencies throughout the country, where he addresses issues associated with:

• Student access, diversity, inclusion, expression, and success.
• Faculty diversity, inclusion, and expression.
• Institutional quality, accountability, and accreditation.

Coleman is an adjunct professor at the University of Southern California’s Rossier School of Education, where he teaches a master’s level course on enrollment management law and policy.

Additional links:

Read ACT’s joint amicus brief, submitted with College Board, National Association for College Admission Counseling, and American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers.

Each fall, ACT’s American College Application Campaign (ACAC) hosts the #WhyApply social media campaign to encourage students across the country as they apply to college and plan for their futures. This year, on Sept. 22, we will recognize the nearly 300,000 students who will participate in college application events at 6,000 high schools.

But who says the celebration should be limited to one day? Quite the opposite, according to ACAC’s School of Excellence winners. These educators have demonstrated exemplary success in helping to increase the number of first-generation college students and students from low-income families pursuing a college degree or other higher education credential. And their events, and similar events in nearly all states and the District of Columbia, span from August to November.

When a college application season winds down, counselors and students have a lot to reflect on. Successful schools tend to host a wide array of programming for students, from pre- and post-application workshops to guest speakers.

“As we know, families have varying levels of experience with the college application process,” said Michaela Thomas, former school counselor at Littleton High School in Littleton, New Hampshire. “Building events into the school day ensures students are given the space to complete their applications and do so to the fullest extent with your team’s knowledge.”

Grade inflation occurring in every subject, with highest rates in STEM subjects

IOWA CITY, Iowa — The average GPA for high schoolers continued to rise between 2010 and 2022, with evidence of grade inflation in high school math, science, English, and social studies courses, according to a new report released today by ACT, the nonprofit organization that administers the college readiness exam. In a 12-year time frame, the average adjusted math GPA increased from 3.02 to 3.32, a 0.30 grade point change — the highest across all subjects.

“While average GPAs have risen over the past 12 years across all core academic subjects, this has not corresponded with improvements in other measures of academic achievement, particularly in mathematics,” ACT CEO Janet Godwin said. “We already knew that grade inflation is a persistent, systemic problem, common across classrooms, districts, and states. We now know that grade inflation is happening across the entire curriculum, and is most pronounced for mathematics, as average grades have gone up at the same time as we have seen alarming declines in mathematics scores and other readiness measures. Less reliable grades will make it even more challenging for students to determine their next steps beyond high school.”

Grade inflation is when the assignment of grades does not align with content mastery. For all subjects examined from 2010 to 2022, the percentage of students assigned B and C grades declined, while the number of students who were assigned A grades increased. These higher grades were not associated with improved achievement on the ACT exam.

“As average high school GPA continues to increase, more students are receiving A grades and fewer students are receiving B and C grades. This makes it more difficult to use GPA to understand students’ academic achievement and preparation for college,” explained Dr. Edgar I. Sanchez, a lead research scientist at ACT and author of the report. “Grade inflation is making grades a less reliable measure of how well a student is performing academically and how prepared they are for future endeavors, including college.”

The rate of grade inflation varied by subject and by student group. Grade inflation rose the most in math, on average, particularly in the later years of the study, followed by science, English, and finally social studies, which had the least grade inflation.

“Grade inflation is truly systemic because it is happening everywhere, in every subject, for every kind of student. That’s why this is a challenge for policymakers — not teachers — to remedy, and it is up to policymakers to devise solutions that provide every student the opportunity for academic readiness and success,” Godwin said. “It’s important that students have a clear picture of who they are and what they are able to do as they consider postsecondary paths — whether that includes a two- or four-year school, an apprenticeship, a trade or certificate program, or entering the workforce.”

Key findings:

• Grade inflation was highest in math courses. During the 12-year timeframe for the study, for math, adjusted subject GPA increased from 3.02 to 3.32, a 0.30 grade point change (i.e., increased from a B letter grade, on average, to B+).
• The percentage of students in English, math, social studies, and science who reported receiving an A GPA increased by 9.6, 11.4, 10.7, and 12.2 percentage points, respectively, from 2010 to 2022.
• Grade inflation occurred for all students.
• The rate of grade inflation was similar for students from all family income groups.
• Female students experienced more grade inflation than male students in all four subject areas.
• In all subjects, Black students experienced the greatest grade inflation when compared to white, Hispanic, and students from other racial/ethnic groups. When comparing Black, Hispanic, and students from other racial/ethnic groups to white students, Black students tended to have greater grade inflation than white students, while Hispanic and students from other racial/ethnic groups tended to have lower grade inflation than white students.
• Schools with a higher proportion of students eligible for free or reduced-price lunch experienced higher rates of grade inflation than schools with lower proportions of eligible students.
• Schools with fewer students of color had higher rates of grade inflation than schools with more students of color.

About ACT
ACT is a mission-driven, nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people achieve education and workplace success. Grounded in more than 60 years of research, ACT is a trusted leader in college and career readiness solutions. Each year, ACT serves millions of students, job seekers, schools, government agencies and employers in the U.S. and around the world with learning resources, assessments, research and credentials designed to help them succeed from elementary school through career. Visit us at www.act.org.

Contact: Allie Ciaramella; allie.ciaramella@act.org

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By: Lisa King, director, American College Application Campaign

This year’s EMS was particularly exciting for me, as it was the first opportunity I’ve had to share the ambitious work we’ve done to reimagine ACT’s vision and strategic direction for the future. At ACT and Encoura, we’ve weathered the pandemic. We’ve reckoned with the implications of test optional. And we’ve explored the needs of the education and workforce systems, and we’ve emerged with a renewed focus directed toward the students we all serve.

Our strategic, long-term vision sets a bold course. By 2032, ACT will empower 20.2 million more learners to exit high school ready for postsecondary and work opportunities. This ambitious vision requires that ACT concentrate our work around five strategic pillars.

Build. ACT is building best-in-class, responsive assessments and delivery platforms that will position ACT and our stakeholders to have significant impact on our education and workforce ecosystem.

Inform. ACT is shifting from data provider to insights ally for learners and organizations. Holistic analytics and insight reporting will empower better decisions and create opportunities for success.

Connect. ACT is amplifying learners’ connections and access to compelling postsecondary and work opportunities. In collaboration with Encoura, ACT is enhancing and aligning the ACT test to reflect redefined readiness, bringing new products to market to meet unmet needs, and providing more value to learners, families, and educators.

Mobilize. ACT is redefining readiness to capture the knowledge, skills, behaviors, and navigation that matter now in both postsecondary and career pursuits. We are strengthening ACT’s thought leadership to marshal support for redefined readiness nationwide.

Partner. ACT will accelerate the adoption and use of our robust suite of solutions for the K-12, postsecondary, and workforce systems. We are collaborating with key stakeholders to ensure continued product innovation.

ACT will renew and deepen its commitment to equity, access, and opportunity for all as it realizes these strategic pillars. Changing demographics demand that colleges and employers seek and engage a population that is increasingly diverse and mostly from low-income households. Our vision and aligned work will create solutions for a world of evolving opportunities and provide more support for learners to chart pathways toward greater mobility and economic prosperity.

We’ve got our work cut out for us. But by moving forward with a laser focus, we will make it happen. And I want you to be part of it alongside ACT. We want to hear from you, work with you, transform with you. I’m counting on you – and so are the 20 million students we are ready to serve!