ACT EXPLORE Understanding Your Results

Why the EXPLORE? Research shows that monitoring student progress in middle school, raising parent and student awareness, and supporting early preparation, is essential to college and career readiness and success. - John Haeger, President - NAU

Why Cont. EXPLORE results in better performance on the ACT; it increases educational achievement.

What is it? EXPLORE, a “pre-ACT,” offers an early indicator of college readiness, and helps students “explore” the world of possibilities.

EXPLORE Results in Three Quick Questions Where do I stand right now? What are my plans and goals for after high school? What can I do to improve?

“Where do I stand right now?” EXPLORE shows student strengths and weaknesses in four subject areas: English, math, reading, and science. You can see how your student’s scores compare to those of other students who have taken EXPLORE. Your report also shows the skills you most likely have (it is not 100% accurate).

“What Do My Scores Mean?” Student scores are between 1 (the lowest score you can receive) and 25 (the highest score you can receive).

The Composite Score is Simply the Average of ALL the Scores (rounded to a whole number). In the same way the overall grade point average in school shows how well students are doing across all of your different classes, the EXPLORE Composite Score shows how well your student did across the entire EXPLORE test.

Scores within Scores? The two scores directly under English tell you how well your student did in these two areas of English: Usage/Mechanics—punctuation, grammar and usage, and sentence structure Rhetorical Skills—your student’s understanding of the use of strategy, organization, and style in writing These scores only range from 1 to 12. Added together they do NOT necessarily equal the English Test score.

“How Do My Scores Compare with Those of Other Students Who Took EXPLORE?” Next to your student’s scores, you'll find the percent of students scoring at or below your score. This shows you how your student’s scores compare to those of students across the country who took EXPLORE.

The example above shows 73% next to the student's English score. This means she scored as high as or higher than 73% of students in her grade across the U.S. who took EXPLORE at about the same time. The other percents show how you scored relative to other students who took EXPLORE at ACP.

The Estimated PLAN Composite Score Range is a prediction about how your student is likely to score on PLAN if they take the right courses and work hard in those courses. You can use these predicted or estimated scores to see if they are on track to achieve the scores they want when they take the ACT later in high school. (See EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT.)EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT Keep in mind that these scores are only estimates, not guarantees. Improving study habits and taking more challenging courses are likely to improve PLAN and ACT scores.

How Do I Know if My Student Is Ready? This is a chart of scores by grade of scores that mark college readiness.

“What are my plans and goals for after high school?” When students took EXPLORE, they answered questions about their plans after high school and about their interests in several kinds of activities. This information can help you and your student learn more about careers, clarify their goals, and begin to plan their future.

How Can I Improve? The back of the Score Report describes the skills and knowledge students probably already have. You'll also see some ideas for improving even more in the different subject areas. The suggestions are based on scores and can help your student become better prepared.

Questions… Please sit and discuss scores with your students. Look at their schedule/course request for next year and make sure they are scheduled in the correct classes. Please contact your counselor at ACP - O