Student Score Report Interpretation ACT Explore Student Score Report Interpretation

Cheryl Gambaro Ann Prashar Lisa Standal Jill Suhajda Principal Reuther Middle School Ann Prashar Lisa Standal Jill Suhajda Counselor 2

Interpretation Session Goals: ACT Explore Score Interpretation Session Goals: During today’s session we will: Review basic fundaments of the Explore, Plan and ACT/MME assessments. Explain the various components of the Student Score Report. Identify how Explore and Plan results can help students to prepare for the ACT.

EXPLORE 7th and 8th grade (score range 1 to 25) PLAN 9th and 10th grade (scores 1 to 32) ACT 11th and 12th grade (scores 1 to 36) 4

Beginning with the end in mind…. Michigan Merit Exam 5

MME Components ACT – College Readiness Work Keys – Career English (18), Reading (21), Science (24), Math (22) Work Keys – Career Applied Math, Reading for Info, Locating Information Michigan Items – Alignment Social Studies, Science, Math, Writing 6

ACT Science Test 40 questions / 35 minutes

ACT Reading Test 40 - Questions / 35 – Minute Test

Reading Topics Humanities – architecture, art, dance, ethics, film, language, literary criticism, music, philosophy, radio, television, and theater. Social Studies -anthropology, archaeology, biography, business, economics, education, geography, history, political science, psychology, and sociology Natural Sciences - anatomy, astronomy, biology, botany, chemistry, ecology, geology, medicine, meteorology, microbiology, natural history, physiology, physics, technology, and zoology. Prose Fiction - short stories or excerpts from short stories or novels.

ACT Math Test 60 questions / 60 minutes

ACT English Test 75-questions / 45-minute test

ACT Readiness Benchmarks for Credit-Earning College Courses ACT College-Readiness Benchmarks ACT Readiness Benchmarks for Credit-Earning College Courses College EXPLORE (7th/8th) PLAN (9th/10th) ACT (11th/12th) Credit-Earning College Readiness College Readiness College Readiness Course Benchmarks Benchmarks Benchmarks English Comp. English English English Algebra Math Math Math Social Science Reading Reading Reading Biology Science Science Science 8th 13 17 15 20 10th 15 19 17 21 18 22 21 24 75 % chance “C” or better 50% chance of “B” or better Are these students “on track”?

What is so Important about The Explore and Plan?

Current Testing Pattern 7th Explore (1-25) 8th Explore (1-25) 9th Plan (1-32) 10th Plan (1-32) 11th ACT/MME (1-36) Allows for one year’s measurement of growth and time for interventions.

Why Take Explore/PLAN? Explore and Plan show students their strengths and weaknesses in English, Math, Reading, and Science Explore and Plan lets students know if they are on target for the college of their choice Explore and Plan helps students to find careers that match with their interests Explore and Plan helps students to prepare for the ACT Visual 2: Points of Emphasis There are many benefits to taking PLAN: PLAN shows you your academic strengths and weaknesses. With this information, you can take additional courses or get extra help in subjects where improvement is needed. With PLAN’s College Readiness Benchmark Scores, you can see whether or not you are on target to be ready for college-level coursework. PLAN’s career planning component helps you find careers in line with your interests. PLAN tests the same 4 areas as the ACT, making it a powerful predictor of performance on the ACT.

MEAP and MME Elementary and Middle Schools have celebrated incredibly high success rates on the MEAP… What happens when the students who were “proficient” on the 8th grade MEAP take the Explore, Plan and ACT?

What percent of students in each MEAP scale score range met standards on the MME?

State raises bar on tests to prepare kids for college, careers The Detroit Free Press 2.09.11 3 key points

The Detroit News 2.08.11

K-12 Curriculum Alignment The 1-25 score measured by the Explore are all standards covered in Elementary and Middle School. Our District is shifting curriculum alignment to the ACT College Readiness Standards (rather than the MEAP). Elementary and MS have been in-serviced on the Standards and the State is moving to the National Core Standards which are ACT based.

District Goals All graduates of the Rochester Community Schools will be College Ready, Career Ready and Life Ready in English Language Arts. All graduates of the Rochester Community Schools will be College Ready, Career Ready and Life Ready in Mathematics. All graduates of the Rochester Community Schools will be College Ready, Career Ready and Life Ready in Science.

District Values Scholars of Highest Distinction GPA 3.9 - 4.0 4 AP Courses ACT Score of 32 or higher Scholars of Distinction GPA 3.8 3 AP Courses ACT Score of 28 or higher Scholars of Achievement GPA 3.5 2 AP Courses ACT Score of 26 or higher

Why are our scores going up? Our teachers and a rigorous curriculum. There is no substitute for quality instruction in the classroom. We are using our data for over all school improvement and to assist individual students. Revisiting our curriculum/instruction Targeted ACT prep activities and remediation Interventions Stakeholder Involvement

Reuther Results

Student Ownership Students tested in March Counselors review score reports with students Content Teachers review their specific sections of the test Students record their own strength/weakness t-charts Results are also mailed home

2011-2012 Reuther Explore Scores Benchmark Scores

EXPLORE Individual Student Report 27

EXPLORE and PLAN College Readiness Benchmark Scores Early Indicators of College Readiness EXPLORE and PLAN College Readiness Benchmark Scores The EXPLORE and PLAN College Readiness Benchmark Scores are based on the ACT College Readiness Benchmark Scores. They reflect students’ expected growth from EXPLORE to PLAN to the ACT and assume sustained academic effort throughout high school. College Readiness Benchmark Score EXPLORE PLAN ACT English English Composition 13 15 18 Math Algebra 17 19 22 Reading Social Sciences 15 17 21 Science Biology 20 21 24 ACT Subject Area Test College Course(s) PR 43 69 65 91 PR 43 70 65 91 PR 37 63 53 80 Students who meet a Benchmark on the ACT have ≈ 50% chance of earning a B or better and ≈ 75% chance of earning a C or better in the corresponding college course or courses. Students who meet a Benchmark on EXPLORE or PLAN are likely to have approximately this same chance of earning such a grade in the corresponding college course(s) by the time they graduate high school.

Your Scores Visual 6: Points of Emphasis 29 On the left side of the graphic, you will find several scores that indicate how well you did on the EXPLORE test. You will see scores for English, math, reading, science, as well as your Composite, or overall, Score. Each of these scores will range from 1 – 25. The Composite Score is the average of your English, math, reading, and science scores. Notice there are 2 subscores under English. These scores may indicate specific areas in English that need improvement. These scores range from 1-12. The horizontal bars are simply another way to show the percentage of students at or below your scores. The farther to the right the bar extends, the greater the number of students who scored at or below your score. The column titled “In the U.S. Fall 8th”, shows the percentage of students in a national norm group that scored at or below your score. In this example, this student scored as high or higher than 64% of students in the national norm group of 8th graders who took EXPLORE in the fall. You will only have numbers in the 3 columns to the right of the chart if your school ordered this information or if you are in a state where all students take EXPLORE. These columns compare your score to students in your school, school district, or state who took EXPLORE. Do not be concerned if you do not see numbers in these columns. 29 EXPLORE Interpretive Visuals 9/2009 29

Your Estimated PLAN Composite Score Range Visual 7: Points of Emphasis EXPLORE is one of three tests that measure your readiness for college. PLAN is a test usually taken by 10th graders and the ACT is usually taken in 11th or 12th grade. All three tests cover the same four subject areas (English, math, reading, and science). Used together, EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT can show you how your skills and knowledge grow over time. When you take EXPLORE you will receive an estimated PLAN Composite Score Range. The Estimated PLAN Composite Score Range tells you how other students scored on PLAN as tenth graders after achieving the same Composite Score as you received on EXPLORE. Based on your EXPLORE scores, it is likely that when you take PLAN, your score will be in this range. You may score higher if you improve your study skills and/or take challenging courses. Remember, this is not a guarantee. It is an estimate of your performance on PLAN based on your EXPLORE scores and assumes you will continue your current level of commitment to your coursework. 30 EXPLORE Interpretive Visuals 9/2009 30

Your High School Course Plans Compared to Core Visual 8: Points of Emphasis This section compares your plans for high school coursework to a recommended “Core” set of courses that are important to take in order to prepare yourself for college. Core means taking a minimum of: 4 years of English 3 or more years of math 3 or more years of social studies 3 or more years of science Is the student in this example meeting ‘Core’? Students who take this recommended “Core” set of courses tend to be much better prepared for college-level work than students who do not. You should plan to take additional coursework in the appropriate subject areas if your plans fall short of “Core”. Taking additional courses beyond the “Core”, especially upper-level math and science courses, makes it even more likely that you will be ready for college. 31 EXPLORE Interpretive Visuals 9/2009 31

College Readiness Visual 11: Points of Emphasis 32 Your EXPLORE results give you an early indication of how likely you are to be ready for college-level work. While you have quite a bit of time before you will need to take college courses, the time to begin preparing for them is now. EXPLORE uses College Readiness Benchmark Scores to indicate whether or not you are on target to develop the skills and knowledge you need to be ready for college. The best way to get the skills you need is to take challenging, college prep courses in high school. This section shows whether you scored above, at, or below EXPLORE College Readiness Benchmark Scores for English, math, reading, and science. Students who meet the Benchmark Scores in English, math, and science are likely on target for success in entry-level college courses in these subjects. Students meeting the Reading Benchmark Score are likely developing the reading skills needed in all college subject areas. Are your scores at or above the Benchmarks? If so, keep working hard. This just means you are on target for success if you maintain your current focus. You will need to keep working hard to stay on track. Are your scores below the Benchmarks? There is still plenty of time to build your skills. Make sure you are meeting the recommended “Core” courses needed for college success. The information in the “Your Skills” section of the Score report can also help you. You may want to focus your attention on taking more courses in areas where you are not currently meeting Benchmark scores. 32 EXPLORE Interpretive Visuals 9/2009 32

Your Plans for After High School Visual 10: Points of Emphasis When you completed EXPLORE, you were asked to consider your future educational and career plans. As you explore occupations within the Career Area you said you preferred, think about whether or not the Educational Plans you indicated are consistent with the educational preparation required for jobs that interest you. For instance, if you are interested in being a high school classroom teacher, you will most likely need to complete a four-year bachelor’s degree. You can find out more about educational preparation required for specific jobs at www.explorestudent.org. Click on the link for the World-of-Work Map at the bottom of the page to begin exploring careers. You can also visit www.bls.gov/oco to access the Occupational Outlook Handbook, a resource that describes jobs and the outlook for job openings. 33 EXPLORE Interpretive Visuals 9/2009 33

Areas in Which Your Student Would Like Additional help Visual 9: Points of Emphasis When you took EXPLORE, you were asked whether or not you needed help in seven different areas: Making plans for my education, career, and work after high school Improving my writing skills Improving my reading and comprehension Improving my study skills Improving my mathematical skills Improving my computer skills Improving my public speaking skills The items marked with a checkmark are the areas with which you said you would like help. Teachers/Counselors: Be sure to let students know how they can receive help at your school. 34 EXPLORE Interpretive Visuals 9/2009 34

Your Career Possibilities Visual 12: Points of Emphasis PLAN is a great tool for helping you explore the many different career possibilities available. Use your PLAN Score Report, Using Your PLAN Results booklet, and the PLAN student website (www.planstudent.org) to help you learn more about careers in line with your interests. When you took PLAN, you were asked questions about the types of work tasks you liked and disliked. Based on your answers, PLAN can tell you about jobs that may be appealing to you. The results can be found on the World-of-Work Map on your Score Report. Career Areas (each marked with a different letter) that are in line with your interests can be found in the pink shaded areas. See Using Your PLAN Results and www.planstudent.org to find activities that will help you learn more about jobs that fall under these Career Areas.

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Your Skills Visual 15: Points of Emphasis On the right side of side 2 of your Score Report you will find information that you can use to improve your skills in each of the areas tested by PLAN (English. Math, reading, and science). Notice that each suggestion corresponds to specific content areas. For instance, in math, you will find suggestions for how to improve your skills in “Basic Operations”, “Measurement”, and other important math areas. The suggestions you find on your score report will most likely be different from those for other students in your class who took PLAN, because they are based specifically on your PLAN scores.

EXPLORE MATH 04A Test Results Item Analysis for Parents STEP ONE: As you review the MATH section questions and answers, circle whether your student had the question correct or incorrect. This will allow you to focus on the strong items as well as those that may need to be readdressed. NOTE- Look closely at the number of the test item; they are not in order. We have grouped them by the skill being measured. Pre-Algebra Student Results Notes 2. J Correct Incorrect 6. H Correct Incorrect 9. B Correct Incorrect 10. H Correct Incorrect 12. K Correct Incorrect 16. H Correct Incorrect 22. G Correct Incorrect 23. B Correct Incorrect 28. H Correct Incorrect 30. F Correct Incorrect

STEP ONE: Go to the RMS Website and print the item analysis worksheets for English, Reading and Science so that you can complete this same activity in each content area. STEP TWO: Students will be bringing home the test booklets after completing core content reviews with classroom teachers around June 5th. When the booklet comes home, take a close look at the actual test items which you have identified as areas of weakness. Review these items with your student to determine what caused them to select the incorrect answer: Is it a content problem (something that the student has not yet learned or mastered)? Is it the question type (perhaps the student is unfamiliar with the way the question is worded or how the information is presented)? Is it a testing issue (did the student get tired of testing or run out of time or just make a simple mistake)?

STEP THREE: You now have a more clear indication of the areas where remediation efforts need to be focused after completing steps one and two. Remediation Suggestions: Make course selections which will allow your student to grow in their areas of weakness. Use the ACT prep resources and weblinks which can be found on the RHS website for additional problems and practice. Practice makes perfect! Repetition will help to reinforce skills that your student needs to master

STEP FOUR: Help your student to see the connection between his Explore results and his life plans. Will his projected score get him into the college of his choice? What does his world of work indicate regarding his career interests? Having a clear game plan for the future helps a student realize what he needs to do to achieve his goals.

Questions?