Because of their open enrollment policies, community colleges serve large numbers of students whose K-12 education has left them unready to succeed in college-level courses. Colleges typically use test scores such as the ACT to place students into appropriate course levels. However, the use of test-based measures alone has been criticized as being…

Many schools, districts, and states administer the PreACT® and/or the ACT® test to measure readiness for college and careers. A recent study suggests that these test scores can also be used to help identify students who are academically prepared and may benefit from some of the more rigorous courses offered in high schools across the nation,…

This brief summarizes five benefits of schools providing the PreACT® to all their students. The PreACT 8/9 (an earlier version of the PreACT test that is more appropriate for students in grades 8 and 9) and PreACT assessments are designed to provide students with an indication of their educational progress in the context of preparing for the ACT®…

Career planning courses are one of the most effective ways to improve career development, and the benefits to career decision-making are well documented. The research base regarding whether career courses contribute to academic outcomes is less well-developed. Although recent findings suggest that career courses may improve retention in the first-…

Employment status in high school has been shown to have a negative relationship with measures of academic achievement which some researchers have attributed to student characteristics such as demographics and socioeconomic status. The current study investigated differences in the demographic and socioeconomic characteristics of "working…

In response to the "Meredith v. Jefferson County Board of Education" Supreme Court decision, Jefferson County Public Schools (JCPS) reconfigured the district's race-based student assignment and implemented a race- and socioeconomic-based student assignment plan. Using hierarchical linear multiple regression, this study examined students'…

The problem of a prepared workforce is perennial. Part of the challenge is one of supply and demand, as education systems attempt to produce graduates with the technical competencies required for the current jobs available. In the new service- and knowledge-based economy, however, soft skills are cited as a greater need by today's employers.…

This report looks at the progress of the ACT®-tested 2018 U.S. high school graduating class relative to college and career readiness. The data in this report are based on more than 1.9 million graduates--55% of the students in the 2018 national graduating class--who took the ACT at some time from grade 10 to 12. The ACT was taken by the majority…

This report looks at the progress of the 2017 ACT®-tested graduating class relative to college and career readiness. This year's report shows that 60% of students in the 2017 US graduating class took the ACT test, up from 54% in 2013. The increased number of test takers over the past several years enhances the breadth and depth of the data pool,…

This report is the ACT annual report on the progress of U.S. high school graduates relative to college readiness. This year's report shows that 64% of students in the 2016 US graduating class took the ACT test, up from 59% in 2015 and 49% in 2011. The increased number of test takers over the past several years enhances the breadth and depth of the…

This report is the ACT annual report on the progress of U.S. high school graduates relative to college readiness. This year's report shows that 59% of students in the 2015 U.S. graduating class took the ACT® test, up from 57% last year and 49% in 2011. The increased number of test takers over the past several years enhances the breadth and depth…

In recent years, there has been 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 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…

The purpose of this study was to identify the nonacademic reasons that preclude African American males from enrolling in college after high school completion. The examination of this study evolved as a result of an abundance of African American males choosing not to enroll in college after completing high school. A mixed-methods research design…

For 151 male graduates of the University of North Dakota, expressed choices measured by preferences made as high school seniors on the ACT Student Profile Section were significantly more accurate predictors of graduating college major and of career entry occupation than were their Vocational Preference Inventory high point codes. (Author)

Postsecondary and work success is central to the economic and social wellbeing of a country. Fundamentally, college success is measured by persistence to degree attainment. Analogously, work success refers to effective performance of a job's required tasks. To succeed in college, one must be ready for college. A student who is ready for college is…