Even if the state follows through on its plan to require most 11th graders to take the ACT college entrance examination, don’t expect radically altered admission requirements for prospective N.C. State students.
According to a Sept. 3rd News & Observer story, the State Board of Education is set to require most 11th graders to take the ACT examination; the Board could decide on the plan as early as October.
According to Thomas Griffin,the proposal is a positive move toward preparing North Carolina high school students for higher education.
“From the standpoint of an admissions officer, we want to encourage access to higher education for the people of North Carolina,” said Griffin, director of undergraduate admissions. “Making sure that every student has some college entrance exam before they graduate – be it ACT or SAT – is a step in the right direction.”
The proposal’s main benefit for 11th graders is opportunity: the state would pay students’ registration fees if the plan is approved, according to the N&O story.
“Most colleges require the SAT or ACT, and this will help make sure students have one,” Griffin said.
Admissions to continue stressing grades
If the Board of Education approves the ACT plan, it won’t make much difference for prospective N.C. State applicants.
“The best barometer for college preparedness is high school performance. We’ve always stressed classwork more than standardized test scores [for applicants], Griffin said.
Passage of the state’s plan will not affect Admissions’ view of the test itself, either, Griffin said. The ACT will still be considered as valid an examination as the SAT, just as it is now.
“Both tests are valuable tools for admissions officers in selecting applicants,” Griffin said.
“The tests are different, but equally valuable.”
Jayne Fleener, dean of the College of Education, said both standardized tests are valid and beneficial for evaluating students.
While the SAT and ACT are both valid evaluations, there is emerging evidence that the ACT might be more beneficial for college preparation, Fleener said.
“Both [tests] are predictors of student success, but the battery of tests associated with the ACT allow students to have better information about their strengths and make adjustments in their academic efforts and focus,” Fleener said.
While the SAT remains the most common test for students applying to colleges, the ACT has already become a part of many prospective students’ application process. “More applicants are starting to submit both [SAT and ACT] scores,” Griffin said.
According to the Admissions Office, most people that take ACT also take the SAT – but not all.
Out of 10,390 applicants for the fall 2010 semester, only 563 students submitted only ACT scores, according to Admissions Office statistics.
The number of ACT submissions is quite likely to increase if the Board passes the ACT plan, Griffin acknowledged.
Plan won’t change University’s teacher preparation
If the plan passes, “it will not impact how we prepare teachers. The College of Education goes to great lengths to ensure that our graduates are prepared to teach the North Carolina Standard Course of Study in innovative and engaging ways,” said Michael Maher, director of professional education.
The ACT plan might, however, help teachers from the College of Education guide high school students through college preparatory testing more easily.
In conjunction with the ACT plan, the state would use eighth- and tenth-grade tests to provide interim information about where students are doing well, and where they may need additional help, before actually taking the ACT.
These “pre-ACT” tests will “attempt to focus attention on both career preparation and improving academic achievement,” according to the ACT website.
Fleener said PLAN was a great tool to get students ready for the ACT.
“PLAN provides opportunities for reteaching, and provide students and families with some career preparation guidelines,” Fleener said.”In the long run, the [ACT] plan will help students stay on target for post-secondary studies and career preparation,” said Fleener.
While the College of Education won’t instruct students on how to “teach to the ACT,” it will stress that teachers should be familiar with the ACT/PLAN testing battery.
“We provide training for our future teachers in test interpretation, and the use data to make instructional decisions,” Fleener said. “Because the ACT will be tied to PLAN, it will give us the opportunity to address the continuum of feedback systems to access student knowledge and make adjustments to instruction.”
As it is being presented, the ACT plan can only help North Carolina high school students, Fleener said.
“The ACT, along with PLAN, will give students, their families and teachers information that will help refocus and adjust learning in specific need areas,” Fleener said “In this regard, the multiple tests provide much richer data to make academic decisions.”
