Issue Briefs
2008
The Forgotten Middle: Improving Readiness for High School (PDF; 51KB, 3 pages)
The percentage of eighth graders on target to be ready for college-level work by the time they graduate from high school is so small that it raises questions not just about the prospect that these students can eventually be ready for college, but also about whether they are even ready for high school. But when students' skills are improved during middle school, the results by the end of high school can be astounding.
The Economic Benefits of Academic and Career Preparation (PDF; 58KB, 3 pages)
Students should start career planning as early as middle school by learning about their interests and their academic strengths and weaknesses as they begin to consider postsecondary and career options. The results of this study provide a financial rationale by finding that those students who engage in such long-term planning are more likely to earn higher long-term salaries after college graduation.
The Relative Predictive Validity of ACT Scores and High School Grades in
Making College Admission Decisions (PDF; 52KB, 4 pages)
A summary of ACT research on the relative weights of ACT scores and high school grades for predicting college
persistence as well as selected indicators of academic success in college.
The Role of Nonacademic Factors in College Readiness and Success (PDF; 69KB, 5 pages)
In addition to academic factors, nonacademic factors can influence student performance and persistence in college. Effective use of nonacademic student information can support student academic achievement.
What We Know about College Success: Using ACT Data to Inform Educational Issues (PDF; 70KB, 6 pages)
If students are ready for college, dropout rates and the costs of remediation are reduced and more students persist in and graduate from college. ACT research related to college readiness and college success is rich and extensive and offers insights about the impact of readiness on college success.
2007
Defining Rigorous Content for ACT's QualityCore™ End-of-Course Examinations (PDF; 72KB, 5 pages)
End-of-course examinations are only as good as the assumptions used in designing them. What is a course's "essential" content? And what does it mean to master it?
Effective Use of EPAS® Helps Those Students Who Need Help the Most (PDF; 56KB, 4 pages)
Students at lower achievement levels gain substantially when their schools use ACT's EPAS (Educational Planning and Assessment System) effectively.
2006
Benefits of a High School
Core Curriculum (PDF; 199KB, 14 pages)
In this research brief, we describe the benefits of taking the ACT-recommended core curriculum and of taking specific high school courses. The brief is divided into two parts: benefits for academic achievement and college and workforce training readiness, and benefits for college success.
The Benefits of Statewide Use of the ACT® Test (PDF; 5 pages, 81KB)
As part of their move toward statewide assessment at the high school level, a number of states have adopted the ACT test. The ACT, for students in grades 11 and 12, measures students' academic readiness to make successful transitions to college and work after high school.
EPAS: A System that Works (PDF; 16 pages, 42KB)
ACT's EPAS (Educational Planning and Assessment System) is designed to guide and support schools, districts, and states in their efforts to improve students' readiness for life after high school.
Ready to Succeed: All Students Prepared for College and Work (PDF; 20 pages, 399KB)
Every student should leave high school with a ticket to the future. We must encourage students to take rigorous high school courses, monitor their academic progress, make timely interventions, and communicate early and often how well they are progressing toward their goals.
Developing the STEM Education Pipeline (PDF; 107KB, 8 pages)
This report makes recommendations for strengthening science, technology, engineering, and mathematics education in middle schools and high schools.
2005
Are High School Grades Inflated? (PDF; 126KB, 4 pages)
This college readiness brief addresses the question, "How useful to colleges are high school grades alone in making admissions and placement decisions about students?"
ACT College Readiness Benchmarks, Retention, and First-Year College GPA: What's the Connection? (PDF; 101KB, 2 pages)
This college readiness brief explores the connections between attainment of ACT's College Readiness Benchmarks and college retention and first-year college GPA.
Career Planning: Students Need Help Starting Early and Staying Focused (PDF; 121KB, 3 pages)
ACT followed students' academic achievement and career development from 8th grade to high school graduation to determine: when do students begin thinking about their career interests, whether their academic achievement and career interests are related, and if students' career interests are consistent with their college major and career choices.
Do Current State Standards and
Assessments Reflect College Readiness?: A Case Study (PDF; 190KB, 6 pages)
The results of this study show that in at least one case there is evidence that state standards and state assessments alone do not accurately reflect the college readiness levels of the students in the state. Using EXPLORE® and PLAN® in conjunction with a state assessment increases the likelihood that the state's students will be ready for college and work by the time they finish high school.
Gender Fairness Using the ACT (PDF; 193KB, 4 pages)
There is clear evidence that gender differences on the ACT are a function of self-selection and that these differences disappear when all students are tested. Most likely, the differences seen between males and females on the ACT are a function of self-selection—that is, who decides to take the test—rather than inherent bias in what the test is measuring.
Incorporating ACT Scores into Your Statewide Assessment (PDF; 106KB, 3 pages)
With ACT's assistance, your state can determine a score scale for a state standards and college readiness assessment containing multiple measures that usefully and efficiently combines information about student achievement across tests. ACT's straightforward scale-score method ensures that a total score made up of the individual scores from each assessment will yield a meaningful "snapshot" of student performance.
The Sensitivity of the ACT to Instruction (PDF; 121KB, 3 pages)
Taking specific course sequences in high school has a direct effect on students' ACT scores, and thus on their preparedness for college-level coursework.
Using PLAN to Identify Student
Readiness for Advanced Courses in High School (PDF; 87KB, 2 pages)
Administering PLAN to 10th-grade students not only provides them with the opportunity to assess their progress toward their education and career goals, but
also allows schools and school districts to determine which of their students stand
to benefit the most from taking IB, AP, dual enrollment, and other rigorous coursework.
What Are ACT's College Readiness Benchmarks? (PDF; 103KB, 3 pages)
ACT's College Readiness Benchmarks are the minimum ACT test scores required for students to have a high probability of success in credit-bearing college courses—English Composition, social sciences courses, Algebra, or Biology.
What Kind of Test Preparation Is Best? (PDF; 127KB, 3 pages)
As long as students are ready and motivated to learn and the courses cover the
proper material, simply taking the right core courses in high school can increase ACT Composite scores more than does any one of the most beneficial short-term
test preparation activities.
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