COLLEGE
READINESS
The Forgotten
Middle
Ensuring that All Students
Are on Target for College
and Career Readiness
before High School
ACT is an independent, not-for-profit organization that provides
assessment, research, information, and program management
services in the broad areas of education and workforce development.
Each year we serve millions of people in high schools, colleges,
professional associations, businesses, and government agencies,
nationally and internationally. Though designed to meet a wide array
of needs, all ACT programs and services have one guiding purpose—
helping people achieve education and workplace success.
© 2008 by ACT, Inc. All rights reserved.The ACT
®
is a registered trademark of ACT, Inc., in the U.S.A. and other countries. ACT National Curriculum
Survey
®
, EXPLORE
®
, PLAN
®
, and QualityCore
®
are registered trademarks of ACT, Inc. College Readiness Standards
™
is a trademark of ACT, Inc.
The Forgotten Middle
Ensuring that All Students Are
on Target for College and Career
Readiness before High School
Contents
Introduction: The Overwhelming Importance of Being
on Target for College and Career Readiness .......................... 1
1. A Strong Start ...................................................................... 5
2. The Benefits of Academic Behaviors in
Supporting College and Career Readiness .................. 25
3. The Nonnegotiable Knowledge and Skills
Needed by All Eighth-Grade Students .......................... 31
4. Recommendations ............................................................ 35
Appendix .................................................................................... 41
References .................................................................................. 65
i
1
Introduction:
The Overwhelming Importance
of Being on Target for College
and Career Readiness
ACT defines readiness for college as acquisition of the knowledge
and skills a student needs to enroll and succeed in credit-bearing,
first-year courses at a postsecondary institution, such as a two- or
four-year college, trade school, or technical school. Simply stated,
readiness for college means not needing to take remedial courses
in college.
Today, college readiness also means career readiness. While not
every high school graduate plans to attend college, the majority
of the fastest-growing jobs that require a high school diploma, pay
a salary above the poverty line for a family of four, and provide
opportunities for career advancement require knowledge and skills
comparable to those expected of the first-year college student
(ACT, 2006b). We must therefore educate all high school students
according to a common academic expectation, one that prepares
them for both postsecondary education and the workforce. Anything
less will not give high school graduates the foundation of academic
skills they will need to learn additional skills as their jobs change or
as they change jobs throughout their careers.
Improving the college and career readiness of all our students
will provide a better foundation of knowledge and skills to allow
future workers to adapt to the changing requirements of a more
technologically sophisticated and internationally competitive
working world.
However, the most recent results for the 2008 ACT-tested high school
graduating class are alarming: only one in five ACT-tested 2008
high school graduates are prepared for entry-level college courses
in English Composition, College Algebra, social science, and Biology,
while one in four are not prepared for college-level coursework in
any
of the four subject areas (ACT, 2008).
Current international comparisons of academic achievement show
students in the United States at a deficit compared to students in
many other nations. According to the most recent results of the
TIMSS (Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study),
U.S. eighth graders rank fifteenth of forty-five countries in average
mathematics score and ninth in average science score (Gonzales
et al., 2004). The most recent results of the PISA (Programme for
International Student Assessment) rank U.S. 15-year-olds twenty-
eighth of forty countries in average mathematics performance,
eighteenth in average reading performance, and twenty-second
in average science performance (Organisation for Economic
Cooperation and Development, 2004).
Recent ACT research has investigated the multifaceted nature of
college and career readiness. We first analyzed the low level of
college and career readiness among U.S. high school graduates in
Crisis at the Core
(ACT, 2004). The critical role that high-level reading
skills play in college and career readiness in all subject areas was the
focus of
Reading Between the Lines
(ACT, 2006a). And when ACT
data showed that many high school students were still not ready for
college and career after taking a core curriculum, we examined the
need for increased rigor in the high school core curriculum as an
essential element of college and career readiness in
Rigor at Risk
(ACT, 2007b).
The Forgotten Middle
extends this research. This report examines the
specific factors that influence college and career readiness and how
these factors can have their greatest impact during a student’s
educational development. This report suggests that, in the current
educational environment, there is a critical defining point for students
in the college and career readiness process—one so important that,
if students are not on target for college and career readiness by the
time they reach this point, the impact may be nearly irreversible. We
must therefore also focus on getting more students on target for
college and career readiness by the end of eighth grade, so that they
are prepared to maximize the benefits of high school.
Our research shows that, under current conditions,
the level of
academic achievement that students attain by eighth grade has
a larger impact on their college and career readiness by the time
they graduate from high school than anything that happens
academically in high school
. This report also reveals that students’
academic readiness for college and career can be improved when
students develop behaviors in the upper elementary grades and
in middle school that are known to contribute to successful
academic performance.
The implication is clear: if we want not merely to improve but to
maximize the college and career readiness of U.S. students, we need
to intervene not only during high school but also
before
high school,
in the upper elementary grades and in middle school. This research
suggests that even improving high school course rigor may not
succeed unless we first increase the number of entering high school
students who are prepared to benefit from such rigorous courses.
2
3
This report continues to underscore that college and career readiness
is not something that suddenly “happens” when a student graduates
from high school but instead is the result of a process extending
through all the years of a student’s education. College and career
readiness is not a high school issue—it’s a K–12 issue.
Recent years have seen a heightened awareness of the importance
of early childhood education and high school as intervention points
in the educational lives of America’s
children. Less attention, it seems, has
been paid to the importance of the upper
elementary grades and middle school and
the role they must play in the preparation
of students for life after high school. The
results of our research show that the
amount of progress toward college and
career readiness that students have made
by eighth grade is crucial to their future
success. Despite the fact that students
may pass eighth-grade exit tests, too many are arriving at high school
so far behind academically that, under current conditions, they
cannot become ready for college and career regardless of the rigor
of the high school curriculum, the quality of high school instruction, or
the amount of effort they put into their coursework.
Students who leave eighth grade without the essential skills they
need to be on target for college and career readiness too often
leave high school not ready for any kind of meaningful future. If
students are to maximize the benefits of high school, a strong start
is essential. It is therefore imperative for us to turn our attention to
the students in the “Forgotten Middle” to help ensure that they are
prepared to benefit from the high school experience.
Students who fall off the college-preparatory
track early in high school tend to move ever
further from a complete college-preparatory
program as they progress through high
school.
—Finkelstein & Fong, 2008
5
1.
A Strong Start
Eighth-grade students’ academic achievement has
a larger impact on their readiness for college by
the end of high school than anything that happens
academically in today’s high schools.
Among the students in the research study discussed in this report,
fewer
than two in ten eighth graders were on target to be ready for college-level
work by the time they graduate from high school
. That is, too few eighth
graders met all four EXPLORE College Readiness Benchmarks
1
, the
minimum level of achievement that ACT has shown is necessary if
students are to be ready for college and career upon high school
graduation. This means that more than eight of ten eighth-grade students
do not have the knowledge and skills they need to enter high school and
succeed there. And not surprisingly, our research shows that students
who are not prepared for high school are less likely than other students to
be prepared for college and career by the time they graduate from high
school. So although the gates of high school are technically open to all
students, for more than 80 percent of them the door to their futures may
already be closed.
Nor is the lack of achievement by eighth grade limited to those students
traditionally considered at greatest risk of dropping out of high school.
Three out of five eighth-grade students in our study whose annual family
income was less than $30,000 and whose parents did not attend college
were not on target to be ready for college-level reading by the time they
graduated from high school. But among those eighth-graders whose
annual family income was greater than $100,000 and whose parents both
attended college, this figure was still nearly one in four.
The purpose of this study was to determine what influences college and
career readiness and what can be done to ensure that more middle
school students get off to a strong start in high school.
The Research Study
This study had two primary goals. First, we wanted to examine in greater
depth the factors that influence college and career readiness. In doing
so, we wanted to identify those factors that are the most effective
predictors of college and career readiness from middle school to high
school. Second, we wanted to examine the effect that certain steps to
improve students’ level of academic preparation would have on their
1
See the sidebar on p. 14 for more information about ACT’s College Readiness Benchmarks.
6
degree of readiness for college and career.
2
That is, what steps, if
taken by students, would have the most impact on their college and
career readiness?
The study investigated the benefits that certain factors have on
college and career readiness, given students’ background
characteristics, prior academic achievement, and high school
attended. Specifically, the analyses were designed to answer the
following questions:
▼
How important is academic achievement in grade 8 for predicting
college and career readiness in grade 11 or 12?
▼
How important are coursework and grades in high school for
predicting college and career readiness in grade 11 or 12?
▼
How much improvement in students’ college and career
readiness could we expect from their taking additional rigorous
courses and earning higher grades in high school?
▼
How does the academic progress that students make in high
school differ given their achievement level in grade 8?
The analyses were based on data from approximately 216,000
members of the high school graduating classes of 2005 and 2006
who had taken all three programs that make up the longitudinal
assessment component of ACT’s College
Readiness System (EXPLORE
®
, PLAN
®
,
and the ACT
®
test). The final data set for
2005 contained records for 98,812 students
at 4,191 high schools, while the final data
set for 2006 contained records for 117,280
students at 4,638 high schools. The 2005
data set contained 17,671 students who are
members of racial/ethnic minority groups,
while the 2006 data set contained 25,173
such students. (Racial/ethnic minority
students were those who identified
themselves as one of the following: African
American, American Indian, Hispanic,
Multiracial, or Other.)
The 2006 data were used to confirm,
through cross-validation, the results of the
2005 analyses. Because these data mostly
pertain to students who were considering
attending college immediately after high
2
For detailed information about the study methodology, please see the Appendix.
Percentage of High School Classroom Time
Spent Re-teaching Prerequisite Entry-level
Skills in English, Mathematics, and Science*
Lack of readiness to benefit from high school affects
not just the academic development of students but
also how instructional time is spent in the classroom.
Teachers of entering high school students responding
to an ACT survey in spring 2006 said that they spend
from about one-fourth to about one-third of their time in
the classroom re-teaching skills that should have been
learned prior to high school (ACT, 2007b).
Percent of Time
High School Course Spent Re-teaching
English 9 32
Algebra I 24
Biology I 23
* Based on survey responses from 502 teachers of English 9,
613 teachers of Algebra I, and 657 teachers of Biology I.
7
school, they may not be representative of all high school students.
For example, our sample contained a larger percentage of female
students, and smaller percentages of African American and Hispanic
students, than did the U.S. high school graduating classes in the
years under study. See the Appendix for more details.
Eighth-Grade Academic Achievement Is the
Best Predictor of College and Career Readiness
by High School Graduation
We first constructed predictive models to examine the relative
strengths of six classes of predictor variables (hereafter referred to
as “factors”) in influencing students’ college and career readiness,
as defined by their performance on the ACT:
3
▼
Background characteristics—gender,
race/ethnicity, parent educational level, annual
family income, primary language spoken at home
▼
Eighth-grade achievement—EXPLORE test
scores in relevant subject areas
▼
Standard high school coursework—highest level
of non-advanced, non-honors courses taken in
relevant subject areas
▼
Advanced/honors high school coursework—
accelerated, honors, or Advanced Placement
courses in relevant subject areas
▼
High school grade point average—self-reported
grade average for courses taken in relevant
subject areas
▼
Student testing behaviors—students’ age and
grade level at time of taking the ACT, whether
students retook the ACT, whether students
provided updated coursework and grade
information if retesting. Because student testing
behaviors are the result of student decisions about
whether, when, and how often to take the ACT,
these behaviors reflect traits such as motivation
and students’ self-perceptions about their
academic abilities.
ACT’s College Readiness System
ACT’s College Readiness System is
intended to help states prepare every
student for college and career. The
system is a fully aligned, research-based
solution. (See the Appendix for more
information about the College
Readiness System.)
The longitudinal assessment component
of the system consists of three
aligned programs:
▼
EXPLORE, for students in grades 8
and 9, provides baseline information
on the academic preparation of
students that can be used to plan
high school coursework.
▼
PLAN, for students in grade 10,
provides a midpoint review of
students’ progress toward their
education and career goals while
there is still time to make necessary
interventions.
▼
The ACT, for students in grades 11
and 12, measures students’ academic
readiness to make successful
transitions to college and work after
high school.
3
Because we anticipated that the predictive relationships might differ among high schools, we constructed
hierarchical linear models in which regression weights relating predictor variables to outcome variables can
vary among high schools.
While the factors we examined are not exhaustive of all the factors
that could influence students’ college and career readiness, they are
intended to encompass the major influences on college and career
readiness.
As shown in Figures 1a through 1d, eighth-grade achievement
(measured by the four EXPLORE scores in English, Mathematics,
Reading, and Science) displays a stronger relationship with eleventh-
or twelfth-grade ACT scores, and therefore with college and career
readiness, than does any other factor—more than students’ family
background, high school coursework, or high school grade point
average. The predictive power of eighth-grade academic
achievement ranged from more than two-and-a-half times as strong
as the next strongest factor (in English) to three-and-a-half times the
strength of the next strongest factor (in Science).
Compared to eighth-grade academic achievement, the predictive
power of each of the other factors we examined was small and in
some cases negligible. The weakest factor in English and Reading
was standard coursework (highest level of non-advanced, non-honors
courses taken), while in Mathematics and Science the weakest factor
was advanced/honors coursework (whether students had taken
accelerated, honors, or Advanced Placement courses).
We found similar results for racial/ethnic minority students, presented
in Figures 2a through 2d (p. 10). The results for racial/ethnic minority
students were nearly identical to those for the total group of students
in each subject area: once again, eighth-grade academic
achievement had by far the strongest relationship with college and
career readiness. In fact, while the predictive power of the other
factors was again small or negligible, the predictive power of eighth-
grade achievement was somewhat greater for racial/ethnic minority
students than that seen for the total group.
Similar results to those for the total group were also obtained when
the data were analyzed by students’ annual family income level
(less than $30,000, between $30,000 and $100,000, and more
than $100,000).
8
Figure 1c: Reading
Eighth-grade
achievement
60%
Student testing
behaviors
18%
High school grade
point average
9%
Advanced/honors
coursework
8%
Background
characteristics
5%
(Standard
coursework
0%)
9
Figure 1b: Mathematics
Figure 1a: English
Figure 1d: Science
Eighth-grade
achievement
54%
Student testing
behaviors
21%
High school grade
point average
9%
Advanced/honors
coursework
8%
Background
characteristics
7%
Standard
coursework
1%
Eighth-grade
achievement
42%
Student testing
behaviors
10%
High school grade
point average
12%
Advanced/honors
coursework
9%
Background
characteristics
15%
Standard
coursework
12%
Eighth-grade
achievement
49%
Student testing
behaviors
14%
High school grade
point average
9%
Advanced/honors
coursework
6%
Background
characteristics
14%
Standard
coursework
8%
Figure 1: Relative Magnitude of Effect in Predicting Eleventh/Twelfth-Grade
College and Career Readiness (All Students)
10
Figure 2b: Mathematics
Figure 2a: English
4
Figure 2c: Reading
4
Figure 2d: Science
Eighth-grade
achievement
56%
Student testing
behaviors
22%
High school grade
point average
8%
Advanced/honors
coursework
6%
Background
characteristics
4%
Standard
coursework
1%
Eighth-grade
achievement
65%
Student testing
behaviors
17%
High school grade
point average
10%
Advanced/honors
coursework
6%
Background
characteristics
3%
(Standard
coursework
0%)
Eighth-grade
achievement
43%
Student testing
behaviors 8%
High school grade
point average
14%
Advanced/honors
coursework
10%
Background
characteristics
13%
Standard
coursework
12%
Eighth-grade
achievement
52%
Student testing
behaviors
15%
High school grade
point average
11%
Advanced/honors
coursework
5%
Background
characteristics
10%
Standard
coursework
7%
4
The percentages in Figures 2a and 2c do not sum to 100 due to rounding.
Figure 2: Relative Magnitude of Effect in Predicting Eleventh/Twelfth-Grade
College and Career Readiness (Racial/Ethnic Minority Students)
Improvement in Eighth-Grade Academic Achievement
and Being on Target for College and Career Readiness
in Eighth Grade Are More Beneficial Than Any
High School-Level Academic Enhancement
Next, we examined the impact of a variety of steps students could take to
improve their college and career readiness during high school, including:
▼
Maintaining a B average in relevant standard high school courses
▼
Earning higher grades in relevant standard high school courses
▼
Taking a core curriculum in relevant subject areas in high school
(for Mathematics and Science only)
5
▼
Taking additional standard courses in relevant subject areas in
high school (for Mathematics and Science only)
▼
Taking advanced or honors courses in relevant subject areas in high
school (if not already taken)
▼
Meeting EXPLORE College Readiness Benchmarks in all four
subject areas in eighth grade (see sidebar, p. 14)
▼
Increasing EXPLORE scores 2 points in each subject area in
eighth grade
We did not study the impact of targeted high school interventions with
students identified as having academic difficulty (e.g., remedial
coursework); instead, we focused on voluntary steps that are currently
available to high school students to improve their college and career
readiness themselves.
Figures 3a through 3d show the additional percentages of students who
would meet the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks in each subject area
if the students took each of the seven steps independently of the others.
As the figures show, being on target for college and career readiness in
the eighth grade and improving the college and career readiness skills
that students possess by grade 8 have the most dramatic impact on
high school graduates’ ultimate level of college and career readiness.
This impact is much larger than that associated with any single high
school-level enhancement. These results, however, should not be
interpreted to mean that high school-level enhancements have little or
no benefit for students. Rather, of the factors studied, modest increases in
11
5
The core curriculum in mathematics was defined as Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II; in science,
the core curriculum was defined as Biology and Chemistry. For English and Reading, there was not
enough variation in students’ coursework patterns to permit meaningful enhancements with regard to
taking either the core curriculum or additional standard courses (see next bullet). This is likely because
high schools typically require all students to take the same English courses and many of the same social
studies courses.
20
15
10
5
0
1
Increase
standard
English and
social studies
course grades
one letter
Maintain
B average in
standard English
and social studies
courses
Percentage-Point Increase in ACT English
Benchmark Attainment
Take
advanced/honors
English and
social studies
courses
Meet all four
EXPLORE
Benchmarks
Increase
all four
EXPLORE
scores 2 points
4 4
12 12
12
Figure 3: Increases in ACT College Readiness Benchmark
Attainment Associated with Various Academic Interventions
(All Students)
Figure 3b: Mathematics
20
15
10
5
0
1
Maintain
B average in
standard
mathematics
and science
courses
Percentage-Point Increase in ACT Mathematics
Benchmark Attainment
2
7
8
9
13
6
Increase
standard
mathematics
and science
course
grades
one letter
Take core
curriculum in
mathematics
and science
Take
additional
standard
mathematics
and science
courses
Take
advanced/
honors
mathematics
and science
courses
Meet all four
EXPLORE
Benchmarks
Increase
all four
EXPLORE
scores
2 points
Figure 3a: English
13
Figure 3c: Reading
Figure 3d: Science
20
15
10
5
0
0
Maintain
B average in
standard
mathematics
and science
courses
Percentage-Point Increase in ACT Science
Benchmark Attainment
0
3
3
7
13
2
Increase
standard
mathematics
and science
course
grades
one letter
Take core
curriculum in
mathematics
and science
Take
additional
standard
mathematics
and science
courses
Take
advanced/
honors
mathematics
and science
courses
Meet all four
EXPLORE
Benchmarks
Increase
all four
EXPLORE
scores
2 points
20
15
10
5
0
1
Increase
standard
English and
social studies
course grades
one letter
Maintain
B average in
standard English
and social studies
courses
Percentage-Point Increase in ACT Reading
Benchmark Attainment
Take
advanced/honors
English and
social studies
courses
Meet all four
EXPLORE
Benchmarks
Increase
all four
EXPLORE
scores 2 points
4
5
12
16
students’ level of academic achievement by the eighth grade and
being on target for college and career readiness in the eighth grade
had the greatest relative impact on college and career readiness in
grade 11 or 12.
Figures 3a through 3d show that the increases in Benchmark
attainment associated with higher EXPLORE scores and meeting
all four EXPLORE College Readiness Benchmarks were up to three
times the size of the largest increase associated with any single
high school-level academic enhancement. The level of academic
achievement that students reach in all four subject areas by the
eighth grade is a crucial element in determining whether they will
be ready for college and career by the end of high school.
In English and Reading, maintaining a B average in relevant standard
high school courses had the least impact on improving students’
college and career readiness. In Mathematics, taking a core
curriculum in relevant subject areas had the least impact. In Science,
maintaining a B average in relevant standard high school courses
and taking a core curriculum in relevant subject areas had no clear
impact. Consistent with previous ACT research (2004, 2007b), the
small impact of taking a core curriculum in mathematics and science
suggests that, as currently constituted, core courses at far too many
U.S. high schools are not sufficiently rigorous to prepare students for
college and career.
14
ACT’s College Readiness Benchmarks
The ACT College Readiness Benchmarks are scores on the ACT
test that represent the level of achievement required for students
to have a high probability of success in selected credit-bearing,
first-year college courses.
ACT has also established College Readiness Benchmarks for
EXPLORE and PLAN. These scores indicate whether students,
based on their performance on EXPLORE (grade 8) or PLAN
(grade 10), are on target to be ready for first-year college-level
work when they graduate from high school.
Test EXPLORE PLAN The ACT
English 13 15 18
Mathematics 17 19 22
Reading 15 17 21
Science 20 21 24
Table 1: Strongest and Weakest Impact of Various Academic
Interventions on ACT College Readiness Benchmark Attainment
Strongest Impact Weakest Impact
Subject Area
Increase all EXPLORE
scores 2 points
Meet all four EXPLORE
Benchmarks
Maintain B average in
standard English and social
studies courses
Increase all EXPLORE
scores 2 points
Meet all four EXPLORE
Benchmarks
Maintain B average in
standard mathematics and
science courses
Take core curriculum in
mathematics and science
English
Mathematics
Increase all EXPLORE
scores 2 points
Meet all four EXPLORE
Benchmarks
Maintain B average in
standard English and social
studies courses
Increase all EXPLORE
scores 2 points
Meet all four EXPLORE
Benchmarks
Maintain B average in
standard mathematics
and science courses
Take core curriculum in
mathematics and science
Reading
Science
15
Similar results were also seen for racial/ethnic minority students. These
results are presented in Figures 4a through 4d.
These results are summarized in Table 1.
16
20
15
10
5
0
2
Increase
standard
English and
social studies
course grades
one letter
Maintain
B average in
standard English
and social studies
courses
Percentage-Point Increase in ACT English
Benchmark Attainment
Take
advanced/honors
English and
social studies
courses
Meet all four
EXPLORE
Benchmarks
Increase
all four
EXPLORE
scores 2 points
4 4
20
17
25
Figure 4b: Mathematics
20
15
10
5
0
0
Maintain
B average in
standard
mathematics
and science
courses
Percentage-Point Increase in ACT Mathematics
Benchmark Attainment
2
5
5
8
10
3
Increase
standard
mathematics
and science
course
grades
one letter
Take core
curriculum in
mathematics
and science
Take
additional
standard
mathematics
and science
courses
Take
advanced/
honors
mathematics
and science
courses
Meet all four
EXPLORE
Benchmarks
Increase
all four
EXPLORE
scores
2 points
Figure 4a: English
Figure 4: Increases in ACT College Readiness Benchmark
Attainment Associated with Various Academic Interventions
(Racial/Ethnic Minority Students)
17
Figure 4d: Science
Figure 4c: Reading
20
15
10
5
0
1
Increase
standard
English and
social studies
course grades
one letter
Maintain
B average in
standard English
and social studies
courses
Percentage-Point Increase in ACT Reading
Benchmark Attainment
Take
advanced/honors
English and
social studies
courses
Meet all four
EXPLORE
Benchmarks
Increase
all four
EXPLORE
scores 2 points
3
2
16 16
20
15
10
5
0
0
Maintain
B average in
standard
mathematics
and science
courses
Percentage-Point Increase in ACT Science
Benchmark Attainment
0
2
2
6
8
1
Increase
standard
mathematics
and science
course
grades
one letter
Take core
curriculum in
mathematics
and science
Take
additional
standard
mathematics
and science
courses
Take
advanced/
honors
mathematics
and science
courses
Meet all four
EXPLORE
Benchmarks
Increase
all four
EXPLORE
scores
2 points
We also saw comparable results for students at all annual family income
levels.
Overall, the results suggest that getting more eighth-grade students on
target for college and career readiness and increasing their achievement
have the greatest impact across all four subject areas—especially in
English and Reading. This is particularly noteworthy given ACT research
showing that student readiness for college-level reading has a strong
association with their readiness for college in other subject areas (see
sidebar). Earning higher grades in standard courses and taking
advanced or honors courses provide modest benefits in English,
Reading, and Science, and slightly greater benefits in Mathematics.
It is clear from these results that major improvements in academic skills
need to occur
before
grade 8.
While our study examined the effect of each enhancement separately,
several of these enhancements
together
would likely result in a larger
increase. But the feasibility and practicality of students’ accomplishing
multiple enhancements simultaneously—particularly if they start with
below-average prior achievement—have yet to be determined.
Students who are on target in eighth and ninth
grade to be ready for college-level reading are
substantially more likely to be on target to be ready
for college in English, mathematics, and science.
Because reading is likely a strong intervening factor
in academic areas across the curriculum, we
examined the English, mathematics, and science
achievement of eighth-grade students in 2008 who
met and did not meet the EXPLORE College
Readiness Benchmark in Reading. The figure
below shows, for students who met and did not
meet the Reading Benchmark, the percentage of
students meeting the EXPLORE College Readiness
Benchmarks in English, Mathematics, and Science.
Of those students in 2008 who met the EXPLORE
Reading Benchmark:
▼
92 percent also met the EXPLORE
English Benchmark;
▼
65 percent also met the EXPLORE
Mathematics Benchmark; and
▼
31 percent also met the EXPLORE
Science Benchmark.
Of those students in 2008 who did NOT meet
the EXPLORE Reading Benchmark:
▼
only 38 percent also met the EXPLORE
English Benchmark;
▼
only 14 percent also met the EXPLORE
Mathematics Benchmark; and
▼
only 1 percent also met the EXPLORE
Science Benchmark.
Percent
100
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
Met EXPLORE Reading Benchmark
Did Not Meet EXPLORE Reading Benchmark
92
38
65
14
English Mathematics Science
31
EXPLORE College Readiness Benchmark
1
18
Reading Achievement and Achievement in Other Academic Areas
19
The results show that when students’ skills are improved by the
end of middle school, the results by the end of high school can
be impressive. For example, the percentage of students in our
sample who met all four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks
after taking EXPLORE and PLAN was 17 percent. Our research
indicates that if these students had scored just 2 points higher on
each EXPLORE subject test, the percentage who would meet all
four ACT Benchmarks would rise 11 percentage points, to
28 percent—a 43-percent increase over their current level of
ACT Benchmark attainment.
What’s more, improving middle school students’ achievement by
just 2 score points in each subject area would have a cascading
effect over the succeeding levels of education. The 13-point increase
in the percentage of high school graduates ready for college-level
mathematics (see Figure 5b) should later produce about 25,000
additional degree completers at two- and four-year colleges (and
about 25,000 fewer college dropouts) each year in the United States.
6
Extrapolating from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates (U.S.
Department of Labor, 2007), these new degree completers would
enjoy an increase of close to $500 million per year in their combined
average salary (i.e., about $20,000 per person) and a drop in their
average unemployment rate of 2 percentage points.
Similarly, the 16-point increase in the percentage ready for college-
level reading (see Figure 5c) would result in about 20,000 additional
college-degree completers each year in the United States.
Our results clearly show that raising eighth-grade students’ level of
academic achievement and helping them get on target for college
and career readiness are the most powerful steps that can be taken
to improve these students’ college and career readiness by the time
they graduate from high school.
Being on Target for College and Career Readiness
in Eighth Grade Puts Students on a Trajectory
for Success
Because the data for the sample used in this study ranged from the
eighth to the twelfth grade for the same group of students, we were
able to examine the rate of growth in students’ achievement through
high school. We examined growth among three categories of
students in our sample: those who were on target for college and
6
Calculations based on estimates in Noble and Radunzel (2007), Table 7. This table compares
college-degree completion rates during the 1998–2003 period for students who met the ACT College
Readiness Benchmarks in Mathematics and Reading and those who did not. Increases in Benchmark
attainment yielded by the present study were multiplied by the Noble and Radunzel completion rates
to estimate the additional numbers of associate’s degree completers at two-year colleges and
bachelor’s degree completers at four-year colleges that would result from increasing EXPLORE scores
2 points.
career readiness in the eighth grade, those who just missed being
on target for college and career readiness (i.e., by 2 or fewer score
points), and those who were more substantially off target (i.e., by
more than 2 score points).
Figures 5a through 5e present, for each of the four subject tests and
the composite score (which is computed as the average of the four
subject-area scores), the average EXPLORE, PLAN, and ACT scores
for these three categories of students in our 2005 sample. Figures 5a
through 5d show that, on average,
only the group of students who
were on target for college and career readiness by the eighth grade
were ultimately ready for college and career by the eleventh or twelfth
grade
. Even the group of students who just missed being on target in
eighth grade fell short, on average, of becoming ready for college
and career by the time they reached grade 11 or 12. This was true in
each of the four subject areas.
English Test Score
EXPLORE
36
1
31
26
21
16
11
6
PLAN ACT
EXPLORE
English
Benchmark:
13
ACT English
Benchmark:
18
22
20
17
12
9
15
13
15
13
21
16
19
Met/exceeded EXPLORE Benchmark
More than 2 points from EXPLORE Benchmark
Entire sample
Within 2 points of EXPLORE Benchmark
Mathematics Test Score
EXPLORE
36
1
31
26
21
16
11
6
PLAN ACT
EXPLORE
Mathematics
Benchmark:
17
ACT
Mathematics
Benchmark:
22
24
21
19
15
12
17
15
19
16
19
20
16
Met/exceeded EXPLORE Benchmark
More than 2 points from EXPLORE Benchmark
Entire sample
Within 2 points of EXPLORE Benchmark
20
Figure 5a: English
Figure 5: Average Scores for 2005 Sample
(All Students)
Figure 5b: Mathematics
21
Reading Test Score
EXPLORE
36
1
31
26
21
16
11
6
PLAN ACT
EXPLORE
Reading
Benchmark:
15
ACT Reading
Benchmark:
21
24
20
18
14
11
16
14
18
16
21
18
16
Met/exceeded EXPLORE Benchmark
More than 2 points from EXPLORE Benchmark
Entire sample
Within 2 points of EXPLORE Benchmark
Figure 5d: Science
Science Test Score
EXPLORE
36
1
31
26
21
16
11
6
PLAN ACT
EXPLORE
Science
Benchmark:
20
ACT Science
Benchmark:
24
25
22
21
18
15
20
17
22
18
17
21
19
Met/exceeded EXPLORE Benchmark
More than 2 points from EXPLORE Benchmark
Entire sample
Within 2 points of EXPLORE Benchmark
Composite Score
EXPLORE
36
1
31
26
21
16
11
6
PLAN ACT
27
23
21
18
15
20
17
23
18
17
21
19
Met/exceeded all four EXPLORE Benchmarks
More than 2 points from each
EXPLORE Benchmark
Entire sample
Within 2 points of each EXPLORE Benchmark
Figure 5c: Reading
Figure 5e: Composite
Virtually identical results were obtained for a nationally representative
sample of students who had taken the tests across a number of
years, indicating that the results are not specific to the 2005 and 2006
samples.
Note also that in all subject areas the score increases for the group
of students who were on target in eighth grade were steeper than
those for the other two groups, especially from PLAN to the ACT.
This suggests that the rate of growth in high school is accelerated for
students who were on target in eighth grade compared to students
who were not on target, particularly during grades 11 and 12.
We conducted the same analysis for racial/ethnic minority students.
The results are shown in Figures 6a through 6e. Although in some
cases the average scores for these students were slightly lower than
those for the total group, the same trends held.
English Test Score
EXPLORE
36
1
31
26
21
16
11
6
PLAN ACT
EXPLORE
English
Benchmark:
13
ACT English
Benchmark:
18
20
18
16
11
9
14
12
15
12
14
16
18
Met/exceeded EXPLORE Benchmark
More than 2 points from EXPLORE Benchmark
Entire sample
Within 2 points of EXPLORE Benchmark
Mathematics Test Score
EXPLORE
36
1
31
26
21
16
11
6
PLAN ACT
EXPLORE
Mathematics
Benchmark:
17
ACT
Mathematics
Benchmark:
22
23
20
19
15
12
17
14
18
16
Met/exceeded EXPLORE Benchmark
More than 2 points from EXPLORE Benchmark
Entire sample
Within 2 points of EXPLORE Benchmark
Figure 6: Average Scores for 2005 Sample
(Racial/Ethnic Minority Students)
22
Figure 6a: English
Figure 6b: Mathematics
Reading Test Score
EXPLORE
36
1
31
26
21
16
11
6
PLAN
ACT
EXPLORE
Reading
Benchmark:
15
ACT Reading
Benchmark:
21
22
19
18
13
11
16
13
17
15
19
14
Met/exceeded EXPLORE Benchmark
More than 2 points from EXPLORE Benchmark
Entire sample
Within 2 points of EXPLORE Benchmark
16
Science Test Score
EXPLORE
36
1
31
26
21
16
11
6
PLAN ACT
EXPLORE
Science
Benchmark:
20
ACT Science
Benchmark:
24
24
22
21
18
15
19
17
21
17
16
19
Met/exceeded EXPLORE Benchmark
More than 2 points from EXPLORE Benchmark
Entire sample
Within 2 points of EXPLORE Benchmark
18
Composite Score
EXPLORE
36
1
31
26
21
16
11
6
PLAN ACT
26
23
20
18
14
19
16
22
17
15
18
17
Met/exceeded all four EXPLORE Benchmarks
More than 2 points from each
EXPLORE Benchmark
Entire sample
Within 2 points of each EXPLORE Benchmark
23
Figure 6e: Composite
Figure 6c: Reading
Figure 6d: Science
24
Once again, in each of the four subject areas, only the group that was
on target for college and career readiness by the eighth grade went
on to be ready for college and career by the eleventh or twelfth grade.
If students are on target to be ready for college and career in the
eighth grade, their chances of being ready for college and career by
high school graduation are substantially increased.
Again, similar results were seen by annual family income level.
These results show the critical importance of being on target for
college and career readiness in eighth grade: regardless of
race/ethnicity or income, those who are on target are on a trajectory
of success that enables them to be ready for college and career by
high school graduation, while those who are not on target are much
less likely to eventually be ready for college and career.
Summary
In all four subject areas, eighth-grade academic achievement (as
measured by EXPLORE) and meeting all four EXPLORE College
Readiness Benchmarks have a stronger relationship with college
and career readiness (as measured by performance on the ACT
in grade 11 or 12) than factors such as students’ background
characteristics, the courses they take in high school, or the grades
they earn in those courses.
Under current conditions, increasing eighth-grade students’ academic
achievement (as represented by increasing their EXPLORE scores just
2 points on each subject test) and helping them get on target for
college and career readiness would have a substantially larger impact
on students’ readiness for college than any single academic
enhancement undertaken
during
high school, whether it be taking a
minimum core curriculum, increasing course grades or maintaining a
B average, or taking additional standard or advanced/honors courses.
Such increases in students’ academic skills by grade 8 would
continue to pay benefits beyond high school, by increasing the number
of students graduating from college and decreasing the number of
college dropouts. And just imagine the impact if student achievement
could be increased by an even larger amount than the modest
increases examined in this study.
Nevertheless, academic achievement is only part of what students
need in order to be successful in high school. High school students
also need to demonstrate behaviors that contribute to their ability to
perform well academically. The next chapter will show that if students
are able to develop these behaviors by the end of middle school, they
will increase their likelihood of being ready for college and career by
the end of high school.
25
2.
The Benefits of
Academic Behaviors
in Supporting College
and Career Readiness
Improving certain behaviors of middle-school
students—particularly academic discipline—
can help improve students’ readiness for college
and career.
Academic achievement is typically defined as the cognitive
knowledge, skills, and abilities that are measured by achievement
tests such as EXPLORE and the ACT. Our data show that academic
achievement—especially the level of achievement students have
attained by the eighth grade—plays a substantial role in student
readiness for college and career.
Research (e.g., Schweinhart, Barnes,
& Weikart, 1993; Reynolds et al., 2007) has
shown that academic achievement can be
influenced by children’s health needs and
by their psychosocial (that is, psychological
and social) development. Academically
related psychosocial behaviors such as
motivation, social connectedness, school
attendance, obedience of rules, and
avoidance of drugs are important
predictors of academic success in
middle school and high school (Kaufman
& Bradbury, 1992; Rumberger, 1995; Worrell & Hale, 2001; Jones
& Byrnes, 2006). Other beneficial academic behaviors include
academic discipline (i.e., good work and study habits, such as
consistently completing homework), orderly conduct, and positive
relationships with school personnel (Casillas, Robbins,
& Schmeiser, 2007).
The decision to drop out is rarely the result
of a single life event; in fact, many students
exhibit academic warning signs years before
they leave high school. ...Students who
dropped out usually had received a failing
grade in core courses (especially in math or
English), earned a low grade point average
(GPA), or scored low on achievement tests.
—Pinkus, 2008
Recognizing that college and career readiness encompasses a variety
of factors, we studied the impact that academic behaviors might have
on improving student academic achievement. If educators could
intervene effectively with students whose academic behaviors signal a
high risk of academic failure, could these students be set on a course
by which they could eventually benefit from a rigorous curriculum in
high school?
In this phase of our research, ACT collected data from students
at twenty-four U.S. middle schools to examine the role that ten
academically related psychosocial factors play in predicting two
important indicators of students’ future academic success: course
failure in grade 8 and high school grade point average in grade 9.
The ten factors were: academic discipline, commitment, family
attitude, family involvement, optimism, orderly conduct, relationships
with school personnel, safety of the school environment, steadiness,
and thinking before acting. We studied
2,928 students in the course-failure analysis
and 2,146 students in the grade point
average analysis.
Academic Discipline Accounts
for the Majority of the Predictive
Strength of Academic Behaviors
Failing a course is a strong predictor of
dropping out of high school (Allensworth
& Easton, 2005), and our findings suggest that
two of the ten academic behaviors we studied
had a substantial impact on whether a course
was failed in grade 8: academic discipline and
orderly conduct.
As shown in Figure 7a, eighth-grade academic
achievement (as measured by EXPLORE
Composite score) had the greatest influence on
eighth-grade course failure, accounting for
65 percent of the explained variance, vs.
35 percent for the academic behaviors.
Figure 7b gives the relative strengths of the
two specific academic behaviors for predicting
eighth-grade course failure. Academic
discipline alone accounted for 61 percent of the
predictive strength of the academic behaviors
and therefore proved to be the strongest
predictor among all the behaviors studied.
Academic Discipline
Academic discipline is defined as the skill
component of motivation, such as the degree to
which a student is hardworking and conscientious.
It is evidenced by the amount of effort invested into
completing schoolwork and engaging in learning
new material.
Academic discipline features three primary
components, all of which support the various
learning processes and goals that ultimately lead
to academic success:
▼
Planning and Organization—thinking about
necessary steps and devising plans for
achieving objectives. Students skilled in this
area have a strong sense of time, organization,
and prioritization and use strategic skills to aid
in learning new information.
▼
Follow-through and Action—engaging in
behaviors according to previously set plans
and remaining engaged in a task until the
objective is accomplished in a timely fashion.
Students skilled in this area are able to assess
their own progress throughout a task and act
accordingly based on this assessment.
▼
Sustained Effort—maintaining focus on longer-
term goals and working to achieve individual
elements of these goals. Students skilled in this
area persist despite challenges, exhibit on-task
behavior, and are able to manage distractions
in order to achieve a goal.
26
27
In addition to the effect of academic behaviors on eighth-grade course
failure, we looked at their effect on grade point average in ninth grade,
an accepted predictor of future academic performance. We found that
three of the ten academic behaviors we studied had impact on grade
point average in ninth grade: academic discipline, orderly conduct, and
having positive relationships with school personnel.
As shown in Figure 8a, eighth-grade academic achievement (as
measured by EXPLORE Composite score) had the greatest influence
on predicting grade point average in ninth grade, accounting for
53 percent of the explained variance, vs. 47 percent for the
academic behaviors.
Figure 7a: Relative Strength of Academic
Achievement and Academic Behaviors
Figure 7b: Relative Strength of
Different Academic Behaviors
EXPLORE
Composite
65%
Academic
Behaviors
35%
Academic
Discipline
61%
Orderly
Conduct
39%
7
Seventeen percent of the variation in eighth-grade course failure was explained by the predictor
variables. The percentages in figures 7a and 7b sum to 100 because they are reported in terms of
explained variance only. (This is also true of figures 8a and 8b, where 42 percent of the variation in
grade point average in ninth grade was explained by the predictor variables.)
EXPLORE
Composite
53%
Academic
Behaviors
47%
Academic
Discipline
53%
Orderly
Conduct
32%
Relationships
with School
Personnel
15%
Figure 8a: Relative Strength of Academic
Achievement and Academic Behaviors
Figure 8b: Relative Strength of
Different Academic Behaviors
Figure 7: Predicting Failed Course in Eighth Grade
7
Figure 8: Predicting Grade Point Average in Ninth Grade
Figure 8b gives the relative strengths of the three specific academic
behaviors for predicting grade point average in ninth grade. Once
again, academic discipline alone accounted for the majority of the
predictive strength of the academic behaviors (53 percent).
Academic Achievement and Academic
Behaviors Combined are the Best Predictor
of Academic Difficulty
Previous studies have suggested that early remediation of
deficiencies in academic behaviors can be an effective strategy for
improving later academic achievement (Dadds & Fraser, 2003; Dunn
& Mezzich, 2007; Jones & Byrnes, 2006; Kaufman & Bradbury, 1992;
Patterson, Reid, & Eddy, 2002; Rumberger, 1995; Worrell & Hale,
2001). What’s more, the behaviors associated with academic success
serve as useful indicators pointing educators toward needed
interventions and guiding the nature of those interventions. The
combination of academic achievement and academic behaviors is
the best predictor for identifying students at high risk for failing a
course or earning a low grade point average (Figure 9).
28
100
80
60
40
20
0
10
6
Ninth-Grade
Grade Point Average
Eighth-Grade
Course Failure
Percentage of Identified Students
68
51
Total: 57
Total: 78
Academic behaviors
Academic achievement
Figure 9: Rates of Correct Identification of
Students Most Likely to Fail at Least One Course in
Eighth Grade and Students Most Likely to Earn a
Grade Point Average Less than 2.0 in Ninth Grade
The figure shows that if EXPLORE Composite score alone were used
to identify the 5 percent of students in the course-failure sample who
were at the greatest risk of failing a course, 51 percent of them would
have been identified correctly. If the academic behaviors were used
in conjunction with EXPLORE Composite score, 57 percent would
have been identified correctly. Therefore, including academic
behaviors increases the accuracy of identifying students at high risk
for failing a course by 6 percentage points.
Similarly, if EXPLORE Composite score alone were used to identify
the 5 percent of students in the grade point average sample who
were at the greatest risk of earning a grade point average below 2.0,
68 percent of them would have been identified correctly. If the
academic behaviors were used along with EXPLORE Composite
score for identifying these students, 78 percent would have been
identified correctly. So including academic behaviors increases the
accuracy of identifying students at high risk for academic difficulty
by 10 percentage points.
Summary
Middle-school students who demonstrate those behaviors that
enhance academic achievement are more likely to perform well
academically in high school, and be ready for college and career
by the end of high school, than middle-school students who do not
demonstrate these behaviors. By considering these behaviors along
with academic achievement, educators can more accurately identify
students who are in greatest need of interventions to prevent them
from failing courses and dropping out of school, thus increasing the
likelihood that these students will graduate from high school ready
for college and career.
Teaching students to improve their academic behaviors can aid
them in developing their academic skills and thus put them on a
path toward improved readiness for college and career. In the next
chapter, we return to the subject of academic achievement and
focus on identifying the essential knowledge and skills that eighth-
grade students need to know to be on target for college and
career readiness.
29
31
3.
The Nonnegotiable
Knowledge and
Skills Needed by All
Eighth-Grade Students
ACT research shows that eighth-grade students who
are on target to be ready for college and career
by the end of high school have a high likelihood
of attaining that goal. The knowledge and skills
needed for high school should therefore be viewed
as essential, nonnegotiable standards that all
students should attain by the end of eighth grade.
Throughout this report, we have emphasized that all eighth-grade
students need to be on target for college and career readiness. But
in practical terms, what knowledge and skills do students need to
possess to have reached this level of achievement by the time they
begin high school?
ACT’s empirically based College Readiness Standards™ can be
used to define these skills, because the College Readiness
Standards represent what students need to know and be able to do
by the end of high school.
8
ACT’s College Readiness Standards are
vertically aligned with what postsecondary educators expect their
entering students to know and be able to do. EXPLORE and PLAN
are directly connected to the ACT in both content and score scale
and measure whether students are on target for college and career
readiness by eighth and tenth grade, respectively. The lists of
statements associated with the EXPLORE College Readiness
Benchmarks in each subject area—which are also empirically based,
having been derived from course-grade data on a large sample of
first-year students at postsecondary institutions nationwide—therefore
represent the essential knowledge and skills that eighth graders need
to possess in order to be on target for college and career readiness.
8
For more information about ACT’s College Readiness Standards, please see the Appendix.
32
Table 2 presents the essential standards that students need to attain by
the end of eighth grade in English, mathematics, reading, and science.
These standards are not intended to represent everything that should
and will be taught and learned by the end of eighth grade, nor how it
should be taught. Rather, the standards define the skills that our research
tells us are
essential
for entering high school students if they are to be on
target for college and career readiness by high school graduation. These
standards should be nonnegotiable for all students.
Table 2: Nonnegotiable Knowledge and Skills for Eighth-Grade Students to Be on Target
for College and Career Readiness
ENGLISH
Organization, Unity,
and Coherence
Word Choice in Terms
of Style, Tone, Clarity,
and Economy
Sentence Structure
and Formation
Conventions
of Usage
Conventions
of Punctuation
Use conjunctive adverbs
or phrases to show time
relationships in simple
narrative essays (e.g.,
then, this time
)
Revise sentences to
correct awkward and
confusing arrangements
of sentence elements
Revise vague nouns and
pronouns that create
obvious logic problems
Use conjunctions or
punctuation to join
simple clauses
Revise shifts in verb
tense between simple
clauses in a sentence or
between simple
adjoining sentences
Solve such basic
grammatical problems
as how to form the past
and past participle of
irregular but commonly
used verbs and how to
form comparative and
superlative adjectives
Delete commas that
create basic sense
problems (e.g., between
verb and direct object)
MATHEMATICS
Basic Operations
and Applications
Probability,
Statistics, and
Data Analysis
Numbers:
Concepts and
Properties
Expressions,
Equations, and
Inequalities
Graphical
Representations
Properties of
Plane Figures Measurement
Perform one-
operation
computation with
whole numbers
and decimals
Solve problems in
one or two steps
using whole
numbers
Perform common
conversions (e.g.,
inches to feet or
hours to minutes)
Solve routine one-
step arithmetic
problems (using
whole numbers,
fractions, and
decimals) such as
single-step
percent
Solve some
routine two-step
arithmetic
problems
Calculate the
average of a list
of positive whole
numbers
Perform a single
computation
using information
from a table or
chart
Calculate the
average of a list
of numbers
Calculate the
average, given
the number of
data values and
the sum of the
data values
Read tables and
graphs
Perform
computations on
data from tables
and graphs
Use the
relationship
between the
probability of an
event and the
probability of its
complement
Recognize
equivalent
fractions and
fractions in lowest
terms
Recognize one-
digit factors of a
number
Identify a digit’s
place value
Exhibit knowledge
of basic
expressions
(e.g., identify an
expression for a
total as
b
+
g
)
Solve equations
in the form
x
+
a
=
b
, where
a
and
b
are whole
numbers or
decimals
Substitute whole
numbers for
unknown
quantities to
evaluate
expressions
Solve one-step
equations having
integer or decimal
answers
Combine like
terms (e.g.,
2
x
+ 5
x
)
Identify the
location of a point
with a positive
coordinate on the
number line
Locate points on
the number line
and in the first
quadrant
Exhibit some
knowledge of the
angles associated
with parallel lines
Estimate or
calculate the
length of a line
segment based
on other lengths
given on a
geometric figure
Compute the
perimeter of
polygons when
all side lengths
are given
Compute the area
of rectangles
when whole
number
dimensions
are given
33
Note that, as opposed to the sometimes bewildering array of standards
that educators are often expected to teach their students, the standards
in Table 2 are neither numerous nor overwhelming in scope: just 7 in
English, 26 in mathematics, 6 in reading, and 16 in science (55 in all).
But empirical data have shown that they represent the skills needed for
high school and, ultimately, for college and career readiness.
In addition, these standards serve as the instructional links among
elementary school, middle school, and high school. These standards can
and should be used to articulate skills and courses between elementary
school and middle school and between middle school and high school.
And because these standards were originally based on the expectations
of postsecondary educators, the alignment between K–12 and
postsecondary education is inherent in their development.
READING
Main Ideas and
Author's Approach Supporting Details
Sequential,
Comparative, and
Cause-Effect
Relationships Meanings of Words
Generalizations and
Conclusions
Recognize a clear intent
of an author or narrator
in uncomplicated literary
narratives
Locate basic facts (e.g.,
names, dates, events)
clearly stated in a
passage
Determine when (e.g.,
first, last, before, after) or
if an event occurred in
uncomplicated
passages
Recognize clear cause-
effect relationships
described within a
single sentence in a
passage
Understand the
implication of a familiar
word or phrase and of
simple descriptive
language
Draw simple
generalizations and
conclusions about the
main characters in
uncomplicated literary
narratives
SCIENCE
Interpretation of Data Scientific Investigation
Evaluation of Models, Inferences, and
Experimental Results
Select a single piece of data (numerical or
nonnumerical) from a simple data
presentation (e.g., a table or graph with two
or three variables; a food web diagram)
Identify basic features of a table, graph, or
diagram (e.g., headings, units of
measurement, axis labels)
Select two or more pieces of data from a
simple data presentation
Understand basic scientific terminology
Find basic information in a brief body of text
Determine how the value of one variable
changes as the value of another variable
changes in a simple data presentation
Select data from a complex data
presentation (e.g., a table or graph with
more than three variables; a phase
diagram)
Compare or combine data from a simple
data presentation (e.g., order or sum data
from a table)
Translate information into a table, graph, or
diagram
Understand the methods and tools used in
a simple experiment
Understand the methods and tools used in
a moderately complex experiment
Understand a simple experimental design
Identify a control in an experiment
Identify similarities and differences between
experiments
Select a simple hypothesis, prediction, or
conclusion that is supported by a data
presentation or a model
Identify key issues or assumptions in a
model
Table 2 (continued)
Now that we have seen what level of achievement entering high
school students need to be on target for college and career
readiness, let’s consider what steps we need to take to help our
students get there. The next chapter presents detailed
recommendations for ensuring that all students who complete eighth
grade enter high school ready to succeed and leave high school
ready for the challenges of college and career.
35
4.
Recommendations
To maximize students’ readiness for college
and career by the time they graduate from high
school, we must address the needs of the students
in the Forgotten Middle and the role that upper-
elementary and middle school must play in
college and career readiness.
This research study addressed the following questions:
▼
How important is academic achievement in grade 8 for
predicting academic achievement in grade 11 or 12?
Of the academic factors we analyzed, eighth-grade academic
achievement and being on target for college and career
readiness in eighth grade have the greatest impact on college
and career readiness by the end of high school.
▼
How important are coursework and grades in high school for
predicting college and career readiness in grade 11 or 12?
Although high school coursework and high school grades have
a positive relationship with college and career readiness by the
end of high school, their impact is far outweighed by that of
eighth-grade academic achievement and being on target for
college and career readiness in eighth grade. Without sufficient
preparation before high school, students cannot maximize
the benefits of high school–level academic enhancements.
All students must be prepared to profit from high school.
▼
How much improvement in students’ college and career
readiness could we expect from their taking additional
rigorous courses and earning higher grades in high school?
Taken individually, these enhancements provide modest benefits
compared to raising student achievement and helping students
get on target for college and career readiness. However, when
eighth-grade students are ready for high school coursework, the
impact of taking rigorous high school courses and earning higher
grades is optimized.
▼
How does the academic progress that students make in
high school differ given their level of achievement in grade 8?
Compared to students who are not on target for college and career
readiness in eighth grade, students who are on target make greater
academic progress in high school—particularly between
36
grades 10 and 12—and are more likely to be ready for college and
career when they graduate from high school.
High school coursework and grades are important predictors of
students’ academic readiness for college-level courses, but the level
of academic achievement by eighth grade and being on target for
college and career readiness in eighth grade have the most
significant impact on college and career readiness. As this report has
shown, increasing eighth-grade students’ academic achievement by
grade 8 and helping them get on target for college and career
readiness would result in greater improvement in college and career
readiness than their simply taking additional standard courses or
advanced/honors courses in high school or earning higher grades in
high school.
Thus, making sure that all eighth-grade students have
attained the knowledge and skills that put them on target to
becoming ready for college and career is the single most important
step that can be taken to improve their college and career readiness.
Requiring high school students to take and pass more challenging
courses and to earn higher grades, and working with teachers and
administrators to improve the rigor of high school curricula, are
important strategies for achieving the broad goal of improving the
college and career readiness of our high school graduates. But the
results of the research presented in this report suggest that we cannot
expect such activities in and of themselves to change the picture of
college and career readiness among our students until more of them
are ready to learn the content of rigorous high school courses. In the
current educational environment, the majority of students in the eighth
grade will likely not benefit enough from high school–level
enhancements to be prepared for college and career by the time they
graduate from high school, so we must also focus on getting more
students on target for college and career readiness by the end of
eighth grade so that they are prepared to maximize the benefits of
high school. Ultimately, we must reduce the number of students who
are seriously underprepared by the end of middle school, which will
require interventions well before grade 8. Furthermore, if we can
improve students’ academic skills before grade 8, then the other high
school–level enhancements will be far more effective.
College and career readiness does not occur at a single point in time
but is the result of a process extending throughout the K–12 years.
Given the results of this study about the relationship among high
school academic readiness, high school academic success, and
college academic readiness, we offer the following recommendations
to improve academic achievement and college and career readiness
among our nation’s high school graduates:
37
1. Focus K–8 standards on the knowledge and skills that are
essential for college and career readiness, and make these
nonnegotiable for all students. We know that high school
students are more likely to be ready for college and career if they
complete a rigorous core curriculum, take higher-level courses, and
do well in those courses. A key focus for the upper elementary
grades and middle school should be to prepare students for the
high school curriculum by focusing on the attainment of
foundational skills in English, mathematics, reading, and science—
the essential skills for college and career readiness by the end of
high school. As we have seen, it is especially important that
students master foundational English and reading skills by the end
of middle school, because the benefits of students being on target
for college and career readiness far outweigh the impact of any
other action they can take in high school.
The empirically derived standards identified in Chapter 3
represent the essential knowledge and skills that students need
by the end of eighth grade if they are to be on target for college
and career readiness by the end of high school. These standards
can also help to inform greater articulation of skills and courses
among elementary school, middle school, and high school. And
at a time when state content standards are often so numerous
and diverse that they defy teachers’ efforts to teach the most
important standards in depth (ACT, 2007a), it is more important
than ever before that such a list of essential skills form the basis
of what should be taught and mastered before high school. It is
then critical that students’ high school coursework be of sufficient
rigor so that they can build upon this solid foundation of skills and
knowledge in order to become ready for college and career by
high school graduation.
Mastery of these foundational skills
must
become a nonnegotiable
prerequisite for entry into high school. Given the crucial
importance of pre–high school academic achievement level on
students’ eventual level of college and career readiness, it is no
longer acceptable for only some students to possess these skills.
2. Monitor student progress in becoming ready for college and
career, and intervene with students who are not on target to
becoming ready, beginning in upper elementary school and
continuing through middle school. College and career
readiness is a process, not a point in time. It is therefore important
to view the process of preparing students for college and career
as one that encompasses all of K–12. If students are to have a
fighting chance of being ready for college-level coursework by
the time they graduate from high school, their progress must be
monitored so that deficiencies in their foundational skills can be
38
identified early—in the upper elementary grades and at the start
of middle school—and interventions can be made. While
intervention is not the sole solution to the college and career
readiness problem, it is a key element in guaranteeing that these
students will have the skills they need to graduate from high
school ready to succeed in college.
To identify students not on target to be ready for college and
career by the time they graduate from high school, educators
should assess each student’s prior level of academic
achievement beginning in grade 4 and continuing through at
least the eighth grade. Particular attention should be paid to
students’ literacy skills, as they enable students to access content
in all subject areas. When students’ academic readiness
is monitored regularly, timely interventions can be targeted at
specific students’ needs before students veer too far off target.
Policymakers can help by providing the necessary resources to
schools so that they can implement comprehensive monitoring
systems and flexible intervention programs.
3. Improve students’ academic behaviors. Counterproductive
student behaviors that lead to putting off academic work can
become habitual. Unfortunately, many students will not realize
the consequences until much later, when they drop out of high
school, drop out of college, or find themselves stuck in an
unrewarding and low-paying career as adults. The earlier a
student develops important academically related psychosocial
behaviors (such as academic discipline) that contribute to college
and career readiness, the more likely those behaviors are to
become habitual. And these are also the same behaviors that
are conducive to career success.
Educators must, at a minimum, teach academic discipline skills
during the K–8 years. They should also monitor, diagnose,
and improve students’ academic discipline during the upper
elementary and middle school years and intervene assertively
to help students who struggle with homework compliance,
attendance, and other aspects of academic discipline. They
should establish high expectations for all students, engage
students and their families in a long-term commitment to high
school completion and postsecondary success, and implement
activities that highlight and promote strong positive attitudes
toward schoolwork and career planning.
4. Increase federal and state support for schools to implement
intervention programs that help all students become ready
for college and career. Not surprisingly, eighth-grade students
who are not on target for college and career readiness do not
benefit as much from high school–level academic enhancements
39
as do students who are on target. Compared to other strategies,
improving the academic readiness of these students
before
high school produces the greatest increase in college and
career readiness by the end of high school.
At present, far more federal education funding is allocated for
students in preschool through sixth grade and in postsecondary
education than for students in middle school or high school—
and the funding allocated for middle school students is even
slightly lower than that for high school students (see sidebar).
Increased support is needed for schools to implement
interventions designed to bring students with academic
deficiencies back on target for college and career readiness.
This support should focus on both increasing academic
preparation and improving academic behaviors that research
shows support student success.
For students behind in their academic progress, educators should
aggressively supplement regular instruction with supplemental
academic services, such as individual and group tutoring, after-
school and weekend classes, and summer bridge programs.
These supplemental programs can be made available during the
upper elementary grades and middle school, as well as in the
summer between middle and high school and during students’
first year of high school.
The Missing Middle:
FY 2007 U.S. Department of Education Appropriations
Note: The data in this chart are adapted from
FY2007 ED Appropriations:
The Missing Middle Chart
, by Alliance for Excellent Education, 2007.
$20,000,000,000
$18,000,000,000
$16,000,000,000
$14,000,000,000
$12,000,000,000
$10,000,000,000
$8,000,000,000
$6,000,000,000
$4,000,000,000
$2,000,000,000
0
Grades 7–9PreK–6 Grades 10–12 Postsecondary
Conclusion
Eighth-grade students who are not on target for college and career
readiness face severe academic obstacles in high school and are
substantially more likely to be unprepared for college and career
when they graduate than students who are on target to become
ready for college and career in the eighth grade. Sadly, for far too
many of these students, targeted interventions during the high school
years come too late to make a difference: ACT data suggest that
students who enter high school lacking foundational reading and
mathematics skills rarely ever catch up.
The process of preparing students to make successful transitions
from middle school to high school is just as important as the process
of preparing them to make successful transitions from high school to
postsecondary education.
Obstacles to college and career readiness
must be met head on. A challenge for educators is to integrate
activities into the curriculum that promote behaviors that enhance
college and career readiness, such as academic discipline.
Educators should monitor, diagnose, and improve students’
academic behaviors during upper-elementary and middle school.
Research has shown that these behaviors can be taught and learned.
The earlier that students develop these behaviors, the more likely that
the behaviors will become habitual and the more likely that students
will be ready for college and career by the end of high school.
Students who are academically ready for the challenges of high
school are more likely to finish high school academically ready for
college and career. At a time when fewer than two in ten eighth
graders are on target to be ready for college-level coursework by
the time they graduate from high school, it is crucial that we intervene
with the students in the Forgotten Middle—the upper elementary
grades and middle school—to ensure that they enter high school
ready to benefit from high school coursework. Failure to intervene
will mean that, for too many students, it may already be too late to
become prepared for life after high school by the time they reach
the ninth grade.
We
can
take the steps necessary to ensure that every student learns
the essential skills to handle the rigorous high school coursework
that prepares them for college and career. Let’s make these skills
nonnegotiable minimum standards for all K–8 students. They
deserve it.
40
41
Appendix
This study used a predictive modeling methodology on a sample
of students who participated in all three programs that make up the
longitudinal assessment component of ACT’s College Readiness
System: EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT.
To construct predictive models, we used data on students who took
all three tests (EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT) and who graduated
from high school in 2005 or 2006. The analysis data set for 2005
contained records for 98,812 students at 4,191 high schools. The
analysis data set for 2006 contained records for 117,280 students
at 4,638 high schools. Table 3 presents demographic information
for the sample used in the study. (Corresponding information for all
U.S. high school graduates is given in parentheses, where available.)
The 2005 sample used in the analysis of average EXPLORE,
PLAN, and ACT scores (Figure 5, pp. 20–21) was approximately
6 percent larger than the 2005 sample used in Figures 1 (p. 9) and
3 (pp. 12–13). Students who attended small special-purpose high
schools or high schools in foreign countries, or who did not enter a
verifiable high school code, were not included in the earlier analyses.
For the same reason, the 2005 sample used in the analysis of
average EXPLORE, PLAN, and ACT scores for racial/ethnic minority
students (Figure 6, pp. 22–23) was approximately 8 percent larger
than the 2005 sample used in Figures 2 (p. 10) and 4 (pp. 16–17).
We constructed hierarchical prediction models in which regression
weights relating predictor variables to outcome variables can vary
among high schools. In addition to providing estimates of the
variability of regression weights across high schools, hierarchical
models lead to more accurate inferences about the statistical
significance of the weights at typical high schools.
An important question about statistical relationships such as those
presented in this report is whether they hold up over time. Models
were constructed from five imputations of the 2005 data. Because the
final models involved extensive comparisons among many alternative
potential models, there was an inevitable capitalization on chance;
although the thresholds were set conservatively, relationships that
appear to be statistically significant at a particular threshold in the
2005 data might not be so in the future. Moreover, irrespective of
model-fitting artifacts, relationships might themselves change over
time. All the models were therefore re-estimated using data from the
2006 graduates.
42
Table 3: Demographic Information for Research Study Sample
(and All U.S. High School Graduates)
9
Note: All numbers represent percentage values.
African
American
American
Indian
Asian
American
Hispanic White
Multiracial/
Other
10
8 (15) 2 3 5 (17) 79 (63) 3 (5)
11 (16) 2 3 5 (16) 76 (62) 3 (6)
RACE/ETHNICITY
Year
2006
East Midwest Southwest West
12 (41) 48 (22) 29 (12) 11 (25)
11 (41) 43 (22) 36 (12) 10 (25)
GEOGRAPHIC REGION
Year
2005
2006
2005
Less than $30,000 $30,000 to $100,000 Greater than $100,000
22 64 14
23 63 14
ANNUAL FAMILY INCOME
Year
2005
2006
9
U.S. percentages for gender and race/ethnicity were calculated using National Center for Education
Statistics,
Digest of Education Statistics 2005
(2006, Table 9) and
Digest of Education Statistics 2006
(2007, Table 9), and are based on numbers of students 18 and 19 years old who completed high school
during the relevant year.
U.S. percentages for geographic region were calculated using data from the Western Interstate
Commission for Higher Education,
Knocking at the College Door: Projections of High School Graduates
by State and Race/Ethnicity, 1992 to 2022
(2008). Numbers for 2004–05 represent actual figures, while
numbers for 2005–06 represent projected figures.
U.S. percentages for annual family income were not available.
10
The U.S. percentages in this column include American Indian and Asian American students.
55 (50) 45 (50)
GENDER
Year
2005
2006
55 (51) 45 (49)
Female Male
43
The models that used 2006 data cross-validated the results of the
models that used 2005 data; that is, in the models that used 2006
data, the same predictors were statistically significant, and had
approximately the same weights, as in the models that used 2005
data. Given that the final 2006 sample was larger than the final 2005
sample (117,280 students vs. 98,812 students), the mean test scores
for the 2006 sample were about 0.1 score point lower than the mean
test scores for the 2005 sample. In nearly all cases, corresponding
standard deviations across the two samples were identical to one
another and in no case differed by more than 0.1.
We conducted a simulation study to estimate the effect of enhanced
preparation activities on increasing the percentage of students who
met the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks. We first calculated for
each student a predicted ACT score under each scenario of
enhanced preparation, using the relevant hierarchical regression
model. To each predicted ACT score, we added a random-error term
representing the residual variation of actual ACT scores around the
predicted ACT scores; the resulting quantity was a simulated ACT
score. We then calculated the percentage of the simulated ACT
scores that met or exceeded the relevant College Readiness
Benchmark.
ACT’s College Readiness System
ACT’s College Readiness System is intended to help states prepare
every student for college and career. The system is a fully aligned,
research-based solution.
Our College Readiness Standards and College Readiness
Benchmarks (see below) define college readiness empirically, based
on what postsecondary educators indicate is important for students
to know and on actual student success in college. The Standards
and Benchmarks together represent a single academic expectation
for all students, regardless of whether they go on to college or career
after high school.
The longitudinal assessment component of the system—consisting of
EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT—is directly tied to and aligned with
the College Readiness Standards and College Readiness
Benchmarks.
EXPLORE, for students in grades 8 and 9, provides baseline
information on the academic preparation of students that can be
used to plan high school coursework.
44
PLAN, for students in grade 10, provides a midpoint review of
students’ progress toward their education and career goals while
there is still time to make necessary interventions.
The ACT, for students in grades 11 and 12, measures students’
academic readiness to make successful transitions to college and
work after high school. The ACT is the most widely accepted and
used test by postsecondary institutions across the U.S. for college
admission and course placement.
Unlike other large-scale assessments of academic ability, EXPLORE,
PLAN, and the ACT are first and foremost achievement tests. They
are measures whose tasks correspond to recognized high school
learning experiences, but which at the same time do not precisely
duplicate the high school curriculum. EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT
measure not an abstract quality, such as intelligence or aptitude, but
rather what students are able to do with what they have learned in
school.
QualityCore
®
, the instructional improvement component of ACT’s
College Readiness System, offers rigorous model high school
courses designed to prepare all students for postsecondary
education, course by course. QualityCore course objectives focus on
the course-level knowledge and skills needed for college readiness.
As such, they are tied to the College Readiness Standards measured
by EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT. And because EXPLORE, PLAN,
and the ACT are college readiness assessments based on extensive
research into postsecondary expectations, they in turn reflect
performance in QualityCore courses: as students take rigorous
courses in high school, their college readiness will increase.
Finally, ACT’s college–to–high school feedback reports enable
postsecondary institutions in a state to report back to their feeder
high schools about how prepared their high school graduates were
for college. Such feedback is an important element in improving the
high school curriculum. In turn, strengthening high school curricula
helps states meet their ultimate obligation to high school graduates:
increasing the likelihood of their success in college and career so that
they are prepared to meet the challenges of a changing world.
45
ACT National Curriculum Survey
®
All three programs in the longitudinal assessment component of
ACT’s College Readiness System (EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT)
measure achievement because each is firmly based in the curriculum
of the grade level for which it is intended. Every three to four years,
we conduct our National Curriculum Survey, in which we ask more
than 20,000 educators nationwide across grades 7–14 to identify the
knowledge and skills that are important for students to know to be
ready for college-level work. We examine the objectives for instruction
in grades 7 through 12 for all states that have published such
objectives. We then analyze the information to refine the scope and
sequence for each section of each assessment. In this way, rather
than imposing a test construct without empirical support, ACT’s
College Readiness System is able to represent a consensus among
educators and curriculum experts about what is important for
students to know and be able to do.
EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT
EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT, the three programs that make up the
longitudinal assessment component of ACT’s College Readiness
System, each consist of four tests: English, Mathematics, Reading,
and Science. Students who take the ACT are also given the option of
taking the ACT Writing Test. The skills assessed in each of these five
tests are summarized below.
English. The questions in the English tests assess six elements of
effective writing in the two broad categories of usage and mechanics
(punctuation, grammar and usage, sentence structure) and rhetorical
skills (strategy, organization, style). Spelling, vocabulary, and rote
recall of rules of grammar are not tested. The revising and editing
issues posed by the questions offer a certain richness and
complexity. While some questions require students to apply their
knowledge of standard written English to the task of deciding the best
way to write a sentence or sentences, the surrounding context makes
the overriding issue that of clear and effective communication of
meaning.
Mathematics. The questions in the Mathematics tests cover
four cognitive levels: Knowledge and Skills, Direct Application,
Understanding Concepts, and Integrating Conceptual
Understanding. Knowledge and Skills questions require the student
to use one or more facts, definitions, formulas, or procedures to solve
problems that are presented in purely mathematical terms. Direct
Application questions require the student to use one or more facts,
definitions, formulas, or procedures to solve straightforward problems
set in real-world situations. Understanding Concepts questions test
46
the student’s depth of understanding of major concepts by requiring
reasoning from a concept to reach an inference or a conclusion.
Integrating Conceptual Understanding questions test the student’s
ability to achieve an integrated understanding of two or more major
concepts to solve non-routine problems.
Reading. The questions in the Reading tests require the student to
derive meaning from texts by referring to what is explicitly stated and
reasoning to determine implicit meanings and to draw conclusions,
comparisons, and generalizations. Questions do not test the rote
recall of facts from outside the text, isolated vocabulary items, or rules
of formal logic. Rather, the test focuses on the complementary and
mutually supportive skills that readers must bring to bear in studying
written materials across a range of subject areas.
Science. The questions in the Science tests measure students’
mastery of the interpretation, analysis, evaluation, reasoning, and
problem-solving skills required in the natural sciences. The questions
require students to recognize and understand the basic features of,
and concepts related to, the provided information; to examine
critically the relationships between the information provided and the
conclusions drawn or hypotheses developed; and to generalize from
given information to gain new information, draw conclusions, or make
predictions. The questions emphasize scientific reasoning skills rather
than recall of scientific content, skill in mathematics, or pure reading
ability. The tests pose the kinds of questions that college students of
science must answer in planning, carrying out, and evaluating
scientific investigations and in studying scientific theories.
Writing. The Writing Test is an achievement test designed to measure
students’ writing proficiency. It was developed to reflect the type of
writing found in rigorous high school writing curricula and expected of
students entering first-year college composition courses. The Writing
Test consists of one writing prompt that briefly states an issue and
describes two points of view on that issue. Students are asked to
write in response to a question about their position on the issue
described in the writing prompt. In doing so, students may adopt one
or the other of the perspectives described in the prompt, or they may
present a different point of view on the issue. Students’ scores are not
affected by the point of view they take on the issue. Prompts are
designed to be appropriate for response in a 30-minute timed test
and to reflect students’ interests and experiences.
47
Score Scales
The English, Mathematics, Reading, and Science tests within
EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT are each scored on a common score
scale ranging from 1 (lowest) to 25 for EXPLORE, 32 for PLAN, and
36 for the ACT. The optional ACT Writing Test is scored on a scale
ranging from 2 (lowest) to 12. Students receive both total test scores
and subtest scores on each assessment. For example, the ACT
reports a minimum of 12 scores: four test scores (English,
Mathematics, Reading, and Science), one composite score, and
seven subscores (two in English, three in Mathematics, and two in
Reading). The ACT also reports two additional scores to students
who take the optional Writing Test: Writing Test score and combined
English/Writing score. Students who take the Writing Test also receive
narrative comments intended to help them improve their writing.
ACT’s Critical Core Curriculum
The core curriculum we recommend is based on the curriculum
proposed in
A Nation at Risk
(National Commission on Excellence in
Education, 1983). We have long held that this number of courses
best prepares students for college or other forms of postsecondary
training. At a minimum, the courses that constitute our definition of the
core curriculum, by subject area, are:
▼
Four years of English
▼
Three years of mathematics, including rigorous courses in
Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II
▼
Three years of science, including rigorous courses in Biology,
Chemistry, and Physics
▼
Three years of social studies
48
ACT College Readiness Standards—English
The Standards describe what students who score in the specified score ranges are
likely
to know and to be able to do.
Topic Development in Terms
of Purpose and Focus
Organization, Unity,
and Coherence
Word Choice in Terms of Style,
Tone, Clarity, and Economy
■ Use conjunctive adverbs or
phrases to show time
relationships in simple narrative
essays (e.g.,
then, this time
)
■ Revise sentences to correct
awkward and confusing
arrangements of sentence
elements
■ Revise vague nouns and
pronouns that create obvious
logic problems
■ Identify the basic purpose or
role of a specified phrase or
sentence
■ Delete a clause or sentence
because it is obviously
irrelevant to the essay
■ Select the most logical place to
add a sentence in a paragraph
■ Delete obviously synonymous
and wordy material in a
sentence
■ Revise expressions that deviate
from the style of an essay
Standards
Standards
13–15
16–19
■ Identify the central idea or main
topic of a straightforward piece
of writing
■ Determine relevancy when
presented with a variety of
sentence-level details
■ Use conjunctive adverbs or
phrases to express straight-
forward logical relationships
(e.g.,
first, afterward, in
response
)
■ Decide the most logical place to
add a sentence in an essay
■ Add a sentence that introduces
a simple paragraph
■ Delete redundant material
when information is repeated
in different parts of speech
(e.g., “alarmingly startled”)
■ Use the word or phrase most
consistent with the style and
tone of a fairly straightforward
essay
■ Determine the clearest and
most logical conjunction to
link clauses
Standards
20–23
■ Identify the focus of a simple
essay, applying that knowledge
to add a sentence that sharpens
that focus or to determine if an
essay has met a specified goal
■ Delete material primarily
because it disturbs the flow and
development of the paragraph
■ Add a sentence to accomplish
a fairly straightforward purpose
such as illustrating a given
statement
■ Determine the need for
conjunctive adverbs or phrases
to create subtle logical
connections between sentences
(e.g.,
therefore, however, in
addition
)
■ Rearrange the sentences in a
fairly uncomplicated paragraph
for the sake of logic
■ Add a sentence to introduce
or conclude the essay or to
provide a transition between
paragraphs when the essay is
fairly straightforward
■ Revise a phrase that is
redundant in terms of the
meaning and logic of the
entire sentence
■ Identify and correct ambiguous
pronoun references
■ Use the word or phrase most
appropriate in terms of the
content of the sentence and
tone of the essay
Standards
24–27
ACT’s College Readiness Standards
ACT’s College Readiness Standards are precise descriptions of the
essential skills and knowledge that students need to become ready
for college and career, beginning in grade 8 and continuing through
grade 12. The College Readiness Standards are informed by the ACT
National Curriculum Survey.
Essential skills needed by the end of eighth grade Additional skills needed by high school graduation
49
In the charts that follow, the essential skills that eighth-grade students
need to be on target for college and career readiness are shaded in pink.
Additional skills needed for college and career readiness by the time
students graduate from high school are shaded in gray. The remaining
Standards represent increasingly advanced levels of preparation.
Sentence Structure and Formation
Conventions of Punctuation
■ Use conjunctions or punctuation to join
simple clauses
■ Revise shifts in verb tense between
simple clauses in a sentence or between
simple adjoining sentences
■ Solve such basic grammatical problems
as how to form the past and past
participle of irregular but commonly used
verbs and how to form comparative and
superlative adjectives
■ Delete commas that create basic sense
problems (e.g., between verb and direct
object)
■ Determine the need for punctuation
and conjunctions to avoid awkward-
sounding sentence fragments and
fused sentences
■ Decide the appropriate verb tense and
voice by considering the meaning of
the entire sentence
■ Solve such grammatical problems as
whether to use an adverb or adjective
form, how to ensure straightforward
subject-verb and pronoun-antecedent
agreement, and which preposition to
use in simple contexts
■ Recognize and use the appropriate
word in frequently confused pairs such
as
there
and
their, past
and
passed,
and
led
and
lead
■ Provide appropriate punctuation in
straightforward situations (e.g., items in
a series)
■ Delete commas that disturb the sentence
flow (e.g., between modifier and
modified element)
Conventions of Usage
■ Recognize and correct marked
disturbances of sentence flow and
structure (e.g., participial phrase
fragments, missing or incorrect relative
pronouns, dangling or misplaced
modifiers)
■ Use idiomatically appropriate
prepositions, especially in combination
with verbs (e.g.,
long for, appeal to
)
■ Ensure that a verb agrees with its subject
when there is some text between the two
■ Use commas to set off simple
parenthetical phrases
■ Delete unnecessary commas when an
incorrect reading of the sentence
suggests a pause that should be
punctuated (e.g., between verb and
direct object clause)
■ Revise to avoid faulty placement of
phrases and faulty coordination and
subordination of clauses in sentences
with subtle structural problems
■ Maintain consistent verb tense and
pronoun person on the basis of the
preceding clause or sentence
■ Ensure that a pronoun agrees with its
antecedent when the two occur in
separate clauses or sentences
■ Identify the correct past and past
participle forms of irregular and
infrequently used verbs and form
present-perfect verbs by using
have
rather than
of
■ Use punctuation to set off complex
parenthetical phrases
■ Recognize and delete unnecessary
commas based on a careful reading of
a complicated sentence (e.g., between
the elements of a compound subject or
compound verb joined by
and
)
■ Use apostrophes to indicate simple
possessive nouns
■ Recognize inappropriate uses of colons
and semicolons
Skills representing increasingly advanced levels of preparation
50
ACT College Readiness Standards—English (continued)
The Standards describe what students who score in the specified score ranges are
likely
to know and to be able to do.
Topic Development in Terms
of Purpose and Focus
Organization, Unity, and
Coherence
Word Choice in Terms of Style,
Tone, Clarity, and Economy
■ Apply an awareness of the
focus and purpose of a fairly
involved essay to determine the
rhetorical effect and suitability
of an existing phrase or
sentence, or to determine the
need to delete plausible but
irrelevant material
■ Add a sentence to accomplish
a subtle rhetorical purpose such
as to emphasize, to add
supporting detail, or to express
meaning through connotation
■ Make sophisticated distinctions
concerning the logical use
of conjunctive adverbs or
phrases, particularly when
signaling a shift between
paragraphs
■ Rearrange sentences to
improve the logic and
coherence of a complex
paragraph
■ Add a sentence to introduce
or conclude a fairly complex
paragraph
■ Correct redundant material
that involves sophisticated
vocabulary and sounds
acceptable as conversational
English (e.g., “an aesthetic
viewpoint” versus “the outlook
of an aesthetic viewpoint”)
■ Correct vague and wordy or
clumsy and confusing writing
containing sophisticated
language
■ Determine whether a complex
essay has accomplished a
specific purpose
■ Add a phrase or sentence to
accomplish a complex purpose,
often expressed in terms of the
main focus of the essay
■ Consider the need for
introductory sentences or
transitions, basing decisions
on a thorough understanding of
both the logic and rhetorical
effect of the paragraph and
essay
■ Delete redundant material that
involves subtle concepts or that
is redundant in terms of the
paragraph as a whole
Standards
Standards
33–36
28–32
Skills representing increasingly advanced levels of preparation
51
Sentence Structure and Formation
Conventions of Usage
Conventions of Punctuation
■ Use sentence-combining techniques,
effectively avoiding problematic comma
splices, run-on sentences, and sentence
fragments, especially in sentences
containing compound subjects or verbs
■ Maintain a consistent and logical use of
verb tense and pronoun person on the
basis of information in the paragraph or
essay as a whole
■ Correctly use reflexive pronouns, the
possessive pronouns
its
and
your,
and
the relative pronouns
who
and
whom
■ Ensure that a verb agrees with its subject
in unusual situations (e.g., when the
subject-verb order is inverted or when
the subject is an indefinite pronoun)
■ Use commas to set off a nonessential/
nonrestrictive appositive or clause
■ Deal with multiple punctuation problems
(e.g., compound sentences containing
unnecessary commas and phrases
that may or may not be parenthetical)
■ Use an apostrophe to show possession,
especially with irregular plural nouns
■ Use a semicolon to indicate a
relationship between closely related
independent clauses
■ Work comfortably with long sentences
and complex clausal relationships
within sentences, avoiding weak
conjunctions between independent
clauses and maintaining parallel
structure between clauses
■ Provide idiomatically and contextually
appropriate prepositions following verbs
in situations involving sophisticated
language or ideas
■ Ensure that a verb agrees with its subject
when a phrase or clause between the two
suggests a different number for the verb
■ Use a colon to introduce an example or
an elaboration
52
13–15
Standards
ACT College Readiness Standards—Mathematics
The Standards describe what students who score in the specified score ranges are
likely
to know and to be able to do.
Basic Operations
and Applications
Probability, Statistics,
and Data Analysis
Numbers: Concepts
and Properties
■ Calculate the average of a list of
positive whole numbers
■ Perform a single computation
using information from a table or
chart
■ Recognize equivalent fractions
and fractions in lowest terms
■ Perform one-operation
computation with whole numbers
and decimals
■ Solve problems in one or two
steps using whole numbers
■ Perform common conversions
(e.g., inches to feet or hours
to minutes)
16–19
■ Solve routine one-step arithmetic
problems (using whole numbers,
fractions, and decimals) such as
single-step percent
■ Solve some routine two-step
arithmetic problems
■ Calculate the average of a list
of numbers
■ Calculate the average, given the
number of data values and the
sum of the data values
■ Read tables and graphs
■ Perform computations on data
from tables and graphs
■ Use the relationship between the
probability of an event and the
probability of its complement
■ Recognize one-digit factors of
a number
■ Identify a digit’s place value
■ Solve routine two-step or three-
step arithmetic problems involving
concepts such as rate and
proportion, tax added, percentage
off, and computing with a given
average
■ Calculate the missing data value,
given the average and all data
values but one
■ Translate from one representation
of data to another (e.g., a bar
graph to a circle graph)
■ Determine the probability of a
simple event
■ Exhibit knowledge of simple
counting techniques
■ Exhibit knowledge of elementary
number concepts including
rounding, the ordering of decimals,
pattern identification, absolute
value, primes, and greatest
common factor
20–23
Standards
Standards
Essential skills needed by the end of eighth grade Additional skills needed by high school graduation
53
■ Identify the location of
a point with a positive
coordinate on the
number line
■ Exhibit knowledge of
basic expressions (e.g.,
identify an expression
for a total as
b
+
g
)
■ Solve equations in the
form
x
+
a
=
b
, where
a
and
b
are whole
numbers or decimals
■ Estimate or calculate the
length of a line segment
based on other lengths
given on a geometric
figure
Table 1: (continued) The College Readiness Standards
Expressions, Equations,
and Inequalities
Graphical
Representations
Properties of
Plane Figures Measurement Functions
■ Locate points on the
number line and in the
first quadrant
■ Substitute whole
numbers for unknown
quantities to evaluate
expressions
■ Solve one-step equations
having integer or decimal
answers
■ Combine like terms
(e.g., 2
x
+5
x
)
■ Exhibit some knowledge
of the angles associated
with parallel lines
■ Compute the perimeter
of polygons when all
side lengths are given
■ Compute the area of
rectangles when whole
number dimensions are
given
■ Locate points in the
coordinate plane
■ Comprehend the
concept of length on
the number line
■ Exhibit knowledge
of slope
■ Evaluate algebraic
expressions by
substituting integers
for unknown quantities
■ Add and subtract simple
algebraic expressions
■ Solve routine
first-degree equations
■ Perform straightforward
word-to-symbol
translations
■ Multiply two binomials
■ Find the measure of an
angle using properties
of parallel lines
■ Exhibit knowledge of
basic angle properties
and special sums of
angle measures (e.g.,
90°, 180°, and 360°)
■ Compute the area and
perimeter of triangles
and rectangles in simple
problems
■ Use geometric formulas
when all necessary
information is given
■ Evaluate quadratic
functions, expressed in
function notation, at
integer values
54
24–27
ACT College Readiness Standards—Mathematics (continued)
The Standards describe what students who score in the specified score ranges are
likely
to know and to be able to do.
Basic Operations
and Applications
Probability, Statistics,
and Data Analysis
Numbers: Concepts
and Properties
■ Solve multistep arithmetic
problems that involve planning
or converting units of measure
(e.g., feet per second to miles
per hour)
Standards
■ Calculate the average, given
the frequency counts of all the
data values
■ Manipulate data from tables
and graphs
■ Compute straightforward
probabilities for common situations
■ Use Venn diagrams in counting
■ Find and use the least
common multiple
■ Order fractions
■ Work with numerical factors
■ Work with scientific notation
■ Work with squares and square
roots of numbers
■ Work problems involving
positive integer exponents
■ Work with cubes and cube
roots of numbers
■ Determine when an expression
is undefined
■ Exhibit some knowledge of
the complex numbers
■ Solve word problems containing
several rates, proportions, or
percentages
■ Apply number properties
involving prime factorization
■ Apply number properties
involving even/odd numbers
and factors/multiples
■ Apply number properties involving
positive/negative numbers
■ Apply rules of exponents
■ Multiply two complex numbers
■ Calculate or use a weighted
average
■ Interpret and use information
from figures, tables, and graphs
■ Apply counting techniques
■ Compute a probability when the
event and/or sample space are
not given or obvious
Standards
28–32
Skills representing increasingly advanced levels of preparation
55
Expressions, Equations,
and Inequalities
Graphical
Representations
Properties of
Plane Figures Measurement Functions
Table 1: (continued) The College Readiness Standards
■ Identify the graph of a
linear inequality on the
number line
■ Determine the slope
of a line from points
or equations
■ Match linear graphs
with their equations
■ Find the midpoint of
a line segment
■ Solve real-world
problems using first-
degree equations
■ Write expressions,
equations, or inequalities
with a single variable
for common pre-algebra
settings (e.g., rate and
distance problems and
problems that can be
solved by using
proportions)
■ Identify solutions to
simple quadratic
equations
■ Add, subtract, and
multiply polynomials
■ Factor simple
quadratics (e.g., the
difference of squares
and perfect square
trinomials)
■ Solve first-degree
inequalities that do not
require reversing the
inequality sign
■ Use several angle
properties to find an
unknown angle measure
■ Recognize Pythagorean
triples
■ Use properties of
isosceles triangles
■ Evaluate polynomial
functions, expressed
in function notation,
at integer values
■ Express the sine,
cosine, and tangent
of an angle in a right
triangle as a ratio of
given side lengths
■ Compute the area of
triangles and rectangles
when one or more
additional simple steps
are required
■ Compute the area and
circumference of circles
after identifying
necessary information
■ Compute the perimeter
of simple composite
geometric figures with
unknown side lengths
■ Interpret and use
information from graphs
in the coordinate plane
■ Match number line
graphs with solution
sets of linear inequalities
■ Use the distance
formula
■ Use properties of
parallel and
perpendicular lines to
determine an equation
of a line or coordinates
of a point
■ Recognize special
characteristics of
parabolas and circles
(e.g., the vertex of a
parabola and the center
or radius of a circle)
■ Manipulate expressions
and equations
■ Write expressions,
equations, and
inequalities for common
algebra settings
■ Solve linear inequalities
that require reversing
the inequality sign
■ Solve absolute value
equations
■ Solve quadratic
equations
■ Find solutions to systems
of linear equations
■ Apply properties of 30°
-60°-90°, 45°-45°-90°,
similar, and congruent
triangles
■ Use the Pythagorean
theorem
■ Evaluate composite
functions at integer
values
■ Apply basic
trigonometric ratios
to solve right-triangle
problems
■ Use relationships
involving area,
perimeter, and volume
of geometric figures
to compute another
measure
56
ACT College Readiness Standards—Mathematics (continued)
The Standards describe what students who score in the specified score ranges are
likely
to know and to be able to do.
Basic Operations
and Applications
Probability, Statistics,
and Data Analysis
Numbers: Concepts
and Properties
■ Solve complex arithmetic problems
involving percent of increase or
decrease and problems requiring
integration of several concepts
from pre-algebra and/or pre-
geometry (e.g., comparing
percentages or averages, using
several ratios, and finding ratios
in geometry settings)
■ Distinguish between mean,
median, and mode for a list
of numbers
■ Analyze and draw conclusions
based on information from
figures, tables, and graphs
■ Exhibit knowledge of conditional
and joint probability
■ Draw conclusions based on
number concepts, algebraic
properties, and/or relationships
between expressions and numbers
■ Exhibit knowledge of logarithms
and geometric sequences
■ Apply properties of complex
numbers
33–36
Standards
Skills representing increasingly advanced levels of preparation
57
Expressions, Equations,
and Inequalities
Graphical
Representations
Properties of
Plane Figures Measurement Functions
Table 1: (continued) The College Readiness Standards
■ Match number line
graphs with solution
sets of simple quadratic
inequalities
■ Identify characteristics
of graphs based on a
set of conditions or on
a general equation such
as
y
=
ax
2
+
c
■ Solve problems
integrating multiple
algebraic and/or
geometric concepts
■ Analyze and draw
conclusions based on
information from graphs
in the coordinate plane
■ Write expressions that
require planning and/or
manipulating to
accurately model a
situation
■ Write equations and
inequalities that require
planning, manipulating,
and/or solving
■ Solve simple absolute
value inequalities
■ Draw conclusions based
on a set of conditions
■ Solve multistep geometry
problems that involve
integrating concepts,
planning, visualization,
and/or making
connections with other
content areas
■ Use relationships among
angles, arcs, and
distances in a circle
■ Use scale factors to
determine the magnitude
of a size change
■ Compute the area of
composite geometric
figures when planning or
visualization is required
■ Write an expression
for the composite of
two simple functions
■ Use trigonometric
concepts and basic
identities to solve
problems
■ Exhibit knowledge of
unit circle
trigonometry
■ Match graphs of
basic trigonometric
functions with their
equations
58
13–15
16–19
20–23
24–27
ACT College Readiness Standards—Reading
The Standards describe what students who score in the specified score ranges are
likely
to know and to be able to do.
Main Ideas and Author’s Approach
Supporting Details
■ Recognize a clear intent of an author or narrator in
uncomplicated literary narratives
■ Locate basic facts (e.g., names, dates,
events) clearly stated in a passage
■ Identify a clear main idea or purpose of
straightforward paragraphs in uncomplicated
literary narratives
■ Locate simple details at the sentence and
paragraph level in uncomplicated passages
■ Recognize a clear function of a part of an
uncomplicated passage
■ Infer the main idea or purpose of straightforward para-
graphs in uncomplicated literary narratives
■ Understand the overall approach taken by an author
or narrator (e.g., point of view, kinds of evidence
used) in uncomplicated passages
■ Locate important details in uncomplicated
passages
■ Make simple inferences about how details
are used in passages
■ Identify a clear main idea or purpose of any
paragraph or paragraphs in uncomplicated passages
■ Infer the main idea or purpose of straightforward
paragraphs in more challenging passages
■ Summarize basic events and ideas in more
challenging passages
■ Understand the overall approach taken by an author
or narrator (e.g., point of view, kinds of evidence
used) in more challenging passages
■ Locate important details in more
challenging passages
■ Locate and interpret minor or subtly stated
details in uncomplicated passages
■ Discern which details, though they may
appear in different sections throughout a
passage, support important points in more
challenging passages
Descriptions of the ACT Reading Passages
Uncomplicated Literary Narratives
refers to excerpts from essays, short
stories, and novels that tend to use
simple language and structure, have
a clear purpose and a familiar style,
present straightforward interactions
between characters, and employ only
a limited number of literary devices
such as metaphor, simile, or hyperbole.
More Challenging Literary Narratives
refers to excerpts from essays, short
stories, and novels that tend to make
moderate use of figurative language,
have a more intricate structure and
messages conveyed with some
subtlety, and may feature somewhat
complex interactions between
characters.
Complex Literary Narratives
refers
to excerpts from essays, short stories,
and novels that tend to make generous
use of ambiguous language and literary
devices, feature complex and subtle
interactions between characters, often
contain challenging context-dependent
vocabulary, and typically contain
messages and/or meanings that are
not explicit but are embedded in the
passage.
Standards
Standards
Standards
Standards
Essential skills needed by the end of eighth grade Additional skills needed by high school graduation
59
Sequential, Comparative, and
Cause-Effect Relationships
Table 1: The Standards and the Pathways for Transition
Meanings of Words Generalizations and Conclusions
■ Determine when (e.g., first, last, before,
after) or if an event occurred in
uncomplicated passages
■ Recognize clear cause-effect
relationships described within a
single sentence in a passage
■ Understand the implication of a
familiar word or phrase and of
simple descriptive language
■ Draw simple generalizations and
conclusions about the main characters
in uncomplicated literary narratives
■ Use context to understand basic
figurative language
■ Draw simple generalizations and
conclusions about people, ideas, and
so on in uncomplicated passages
■ Identify relationships between main
characters in uncomplicated literary
narratives
■ Recognize clear cause-effect
relationships within a single paragraph
in uncomplicated literary narratives
■ Order simple sequences of events in
uncomplicated literary narratives
■ Identify clear relationships between
people, ideas, and so on in
uncomplicated passages
■ Identify clear cause-effect relationships
in uncomplicated passages
■ Use context to determine the
appropriate meaning of some
figurative and nonfigurative words,
phrases, and statements in
uncomplicated passages
■ Draw generalizations and
conclusions about people, ideas, and
so on in uncomplicated passages
■ Draw simple generalizations and
conclusions using details that support
the main points of more challenging
passages
■ Use context to determine the
appropriate meaning of virtually
any word, phrase, or statement in
uncomplicated passages
■ Use context to determine the
appropriate meaning of some
figurative and nonfigurative words,
phrases, and statements in more
challenging passages
■ Draw subtle generalizations and
conclusions about characters, ideas,
and so on in uncomplicated literary
narratives
■ Draw generalizations and conclusions
about people, ideas, and so on in
more challenging passages
■ Order sequences of events in
uncomplicated passages
■ Understand relationships between
people, ideas, and so on in
uncomplicated passages
■ Identify clear relationships between
characters, ideas, and so on in more
challenging literary narratives
■ Understand implied or subtly
stated cause-effect relationships in
uncomplicated passages
■ Identify clear cause-effect relationships
in more challenging passages
Descriptions of the PLAN Reading Passages
Uncomplicated Informational
Passages
refers to materials that
tend to contain a limited amount of
data, address basic concepts using
familiar language and conventional
organizational patterns, have a clear
purpose, and are written to be
accessible.
More Challenging Informational
Passages
refers to materials that
tend to present concepts that are not
always stated explicitly and that are
accompanied or illustrated by more—
and more detailed—supporting data,
include some difficult context-
dependent words, and are written in
a somewhat more demanding and
less accessible style.
Complex Informational Passages
refers to materials that tend to include
a sizable amount of data, present
difficult concepts that are embedded
(not explicit) in the text, use
demanding words and phrases
whose meaning must be determined
from context, and are likely to include
intricate explanations of processes
or events.
Skills representing increasingly advanced levels of preparation
60
Standards
ACT College Readiness Standards—Reading (continued)
The Standards describe what students who score in the specified score ranges are
likely
to know and to be able to do.
Main Ideas and Author’s Approach
Supporting Details
■ Identify clear main ideas or purposes of
complex passages or their paragraphs
■ Locate and interpret details in complex
passages
■ Understand the function of a part of a passage
when the function is subtle or complex
■ Infer the main idea or purpose of more
challenging passages or their paragraphs
■ Summarize events and ideas in virtually
any passage
■ Understand the overall approach taken by an
author or narrator (e.g., point of view, kinds of
evidence used) in virtually any passage
■ Locate and interpret minor or subtly stated
details in more challenging passages
■ Use details from different sections of some
complex informational passages to
support a specific point or argument
33–36
28–32
Standards
Skills representing increasingly advanced levels of preparation
61
Sequential, Comparative, and
Cause-Effect Relationships
Table 1: The Standards and the Pathways for Transition
Meanings of Words Generalizations and Conclusions
■ Order sequences of events in
complex passages
■ Understand the subtleties in
relationships between people, ideas,
and so on in virtually any passage
■ Understand implied, subtle, or
complex cause-effect relationships
in virtually any passage
■ Determine, even when the language
is richly figurative and the vocabulary is
difficult, the appropriate meaning
of context-dependent words, phrases,
or statements in virtually any passage
■ Draw complex or subtle generalizations
and conclusions about people, ideas,
and so on, often by synthesizing
information from different portions of
the passage
■ Understand and generalize about
portions of a complex literary narrative
■ Order sequences of events in more
challenging passages
■ Understand the dynamics between
people, ideas, and so on in more
challenging passages
■ Understand implied or subtly stated
cause-effect relationships in more
challenging passages
■ Determine the appropriate meaning
of words, phrases, or statements from
figurative or somewhat technical
contexts
■ Use information from one or more
sections of a more challenging
passage to draw generalizations
and conclusions about people,
ideas, and so on
62
13–15
ACT College Readiness Standards—Science
The Standards describe what students who score in the specified score ranges are
likely
to know and to be able to do.
Interpretation of Data
Scientific Investigation
Evaluation of Models, Inferences,
and Experimental Results
■ Select a single piece of data
(numerical or nonnumerical)
from a simple data presentation
(e.g., a table or graph with two
or three variables; a food web
diagram)
■ Identify basic features of a table,
graph, or diagram (e.g., headings,
units of measurement, axis labels)
■ Select two or more pieces of data
from a simple data presentation
■ Understand basic scientific
terminology
■ Find basic information in a brief
body of text
■ Determine how the value of one
variable changes as the value of
another variable changes in a
simple data presentation
■ Select data from a complex data
presentation (e.g., a table or
graph with more than three
variables; a phase diagram)
■ Compare or combine data from
a simple data presentation (e.g.,
order or sum data from a table)
■ Translate information into a table,
graph, or diagram
■ Understand the methods
and tools used in a simple
experiment
■ Understand the methods and
tools used in a moderately
complex experiment
■ Understand a simple
experimental design
■ Identify a control in an
experiment
■ Identify similarities and
differences between
experiments
■ Select a simple hypothesis,
prediction, or conclusion
that is supported by a data
presentation or a model
■ Identify key issues or
assumptions in a model
Standards
Standards
Standards
20–23
• Animal behavior
• Animal development and growth
• Body systems
• Cell structure and processes
• Ecology
• Evolution
• Genetics
• Homeostasis
• Life cycles
• Molecular basis of heredity
• Origin of life
• Photosynthesis
• Plant development, growth, structure
• Populations
• Taxonomy
Science College Readiness Standards are measured in the context of science topics students encounter in science
courses. These topics may include:
Life Science/Biology Physical Science/Chemistry, Physics Earth & Space Science
• Atomic structure
• Chemical bonding, equations, nomenclature,
reactions
• Electrical circuits
• Elements, compounds, mixtures
• Force and motions
• Gravitation
• Heat and work
• Kinetic and potential energy
• Magnetism
• Momentum
• The Periodic Table
• Properties of solutions
• Sound and light
• States, classes, and properties of matter
• Waves
• Earthquakes and volcanoes
• Earth’s atmosphere
• Earth’s resources
• Fossils and geological time
• Geochemical cycles
• Groundwater
• Lakes, rivers, oceans
• Mass movements
• Plate tectonics
• Rocks, minerals
• Solar system
• Stars, galaxies, and the universe
• Water cycle
• Weather and climate
• Weathering and erosion
16–19
Essential skills needed by the end of eighth grade
63
24–27
ACT College Readiness Standards—Science (continued)
The Standards describe what students who score in the specified score ranges are
likely
to know and to be able to do.
Interpretation of Data
Scientific Investigation
Evaluation of Models, Inferences,
and Experimental Results
■ Compare or combine data
from two or more simple data
presentations (e.g., categorize
data from a table using a scale
from another table)
■ Compare or combine data from
a complex data presentation
■ Interpolate between data points
in a table or graph
■ Determine how the value of one
variable changes as the value of
another variable changes in a
complex data presentation
■ Identify and/or use a simple
(e.g., linear) mathematical
relationship between data
■ Analyze given information when
presented with new, simple
information
■ Understand the methods and
tools used in a complex
experiment
■ Understand a complex
experimental design
■ Predict the results of an
additional trial or measurement
in an experiment
■ Determine the experimental
conditions that would produce
specified results
■ Select a simple hypothesis,
prediction, or conclusion that is
supported by two or more data
presentations or models
■ Determine whether given
information supports or
contradicts a simple hypothesis
or conclusion, and why
■ Identify strengths and
weaknesses in one or more
models
■ Identify similarities and
differences between models
■ Determine which model(s) is
(are) supported or weakened
by new information
■ Select a data presentation or
a model that supports or
contradicts a hypothesis,
prediction, or conclusion
Standards
■ Compare or combine data from
a simple data presentation with
data from a complex data
presentation
■ Identify and/or use a complex
(e.g., nonlinear) mathematical
relationship between data
■ Extrapolate from data points in a
table or graph
■ Determine the hypothesis for
an experiment
■ Identify an alternate method for
testing a hypothesis
■ Select a complex hypothesis,
prediction, or conclusion that
is supported by a data
presentation or model
■ Determine whether new
information supports or
weakens a model, and why
■ Use new information to make a
prediction based on a model
Standards
33–36
■ Compare or combine data from
two or more complex data
presentations
■ Analyze given information when
presented with new, complex
information
Standards
■ Understand precision and
accuracy issues
■ Predict how modifying the
design or methods of an
experiment will affect results
■ Identify an additional trial or
experiment that could be
performed to enhance or
evaluate experimental results
■ Select a complex hypothesis,
prediction, or conclusion that
is supported by two or more
data presentations or models
■ Determine whether given
information supports or
contradicts a complex
hypothesis or conclusion,
and why
28–32
Additional skills needed by high school graduation Skills representing increasingly advanced levels of preparation
ACT’s College Readiness Benchmarks
We work with colleges to help them develop guidelines that place
students in courses that are appropriate for their level of achievement
as measured by the ACT. In doing this work, we have gathered course
grade and test score data from a large number of first-year students
and across a wide range of postsecondary institutions. These data
provide an overall measure of what it takes to be successful in a
standard first-year college course. Data from 98 institutions and more
than 90,000 students were used to establish the ACT College
Readiness Benchmarks, which are median course placement scores
that are directly reflective of student success in a college course.
Success here is defined as approximately a 75 percent chance that a
student will earn a grade of C or better, or a 50 percent chance that a
student will earn a grade of B or better. The courses are the ones most
commonly taken by first-year college students in the areas of English,
mathematics, social sciences, and natural sciences, namely: English
Composition; College Algebra; History,
Psychology, Sociology, Political Science,
and Economics; and Biology, respectively.
The ACT scores established as College
Readiness Benchmarks are 18 on the
English Test, 22 on the Mathematics Test,
21 on the Reading Test, and 24 on the
Science Test.
The College Readiness Benchmarks were
based upon a sample of postsecondary
institutions from across the U.S. The data from these institutions
were weighted to reflect postsecondary institutions nationally. The
Benchmarks are median course placement values for these institutions
and as such represent a
typical
set of expectations. We will work with
individual postsecondary institutions, or groups of institutions within a
state, to conduct validation studies to establish local benchmarks that
take specific institutional and student characteristics into account.
We have also established scores on EXPLORE and PLAN that
correspond to the College Readiness Benchmarks for the ACT.
These scores indicate, based on their performance on EXPLORE
(grades 8 and 9) and PLAN (grade 10), whether students are on target
to be ready for college-level work when they graduate from high
school. In EXPLORE, these scores are 13 on the English Test, 17 on
the Mathematics Test, 15 on the Reading Test, and 20 on the Science
Test; in PLAN, the scores are 15 on the English Test, 19 on the
Mathematics Test, 17 on the Reading Test, and 21 on the Science Test.
ACT’s College Readiness Benchmarks
Test EXPLORE PLAN The ACT
English 13 15 18
Mathematics 17 19 22
Reading 15 17 21
Science 20 21 24
64
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Iowa City, IA: Author.
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Ready for college and ready for work: Same or
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practice: The gap defined—Policy implications of the ACT
National Curriculum Survey results 2005–2006.
Iowa City, IA:
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Midwest Region
Chicago (Lincolnshire)
West Region
Sacramento
(Rancho Cordova)
West Region
Denver (Aurora)
East Region
Albany
National Office
Iowa City
East Region
Atlanta
Southwest Region
Austin
East Region
Tallahassee
Washington, DC
Office
Midwest Region
Columbus (Gahanna)
Midwest Region
Lansing
West Region
Sacramento Office
2880 Sunrise Boulevard
Suite 214
Rancho Cordova, California 95742-6549
Telephone: 916/631-9200
Denver Office
3131 South Vaughn Way
Suite 218
Aurora, Colorado 80014-3507
Telephone: 303/337-3273
Midwest Region
Chicago Office
300 Knightsbridge Parkway
Suite 300
Lincolnshire, Illinois 60069-9498
Telephone: 847/634-2560
Ohio Office
700 Taylor Road
Suite 210
Gahanna, Ohio 43230-3318
Telephone: 614/470-9828
Southwest Region
Austin Office
8303 MoPac Expressway North
Suite A-110
Austin, Texas 78759-8369
Telephone: 512/345-1949
East Region
Albany Office
4 Pine West Plaza
Suite 403
Albany, New York 12205-5564
Telephone: 518/869-7378
Atlanta Office
3355 Lenox Road N.E.
Suite 320
Atlanta, Georgia 30326-1332
Telephone: 404/231-1952
Florida Office
1315 East Lafayette Street
Suite A
Tallahassee, Florida 32301-4757
Telephone: 850/878-2729
ACT National Office
500 ACT Drive
P.O. Box 168
Iowa City, Iowa 52243-0168
Telephone: 319/337-1000
Washington, DC Office
One Dupont Circle N.W.
Suite 340
Washington, DC 20036-1170
Telephone: 202/223-2318
ACT Offices
500 ACT Drive
P.O. Box 168
Iowa City, Iowa 52243-0168
www.act.org
12657
