D-15 Must Get Students on Path for College
Despite District 211’s efforts 35 percent of students from the classes of 2010 and 2011 did not meet the college readiness benchmarks.
For the past three weeks, this column has focused on the question of whether Community Consolidated School District 15 students were on track for college when they graduated from eighth grade.
Data from District 15 and Township High School District 211 was obtained, charted and assessed to answer that question for students who have yet to take the ACT College Readiness exam.
However, to determine if District 211’s academic initiatives outlined in last week’s column ultimately helped students overcome deficits from their elementary school years, we need to compare the results of the eighth grade EXPLORE test and the high school junior year ACT side by side.
Is high school too late to find out that your child is not on track for college? Can students with low EXPLORE scores “catch up” and score well on the ACT?
You be the judge.
Test results show that roughly 35 percent of students from the Palatine and Fremd High School classes of 2010 and 2011 did not meet the ACT College Readiness benchmark composite score of 21. To compare, the EXPLORE scores for these same classes of students predicted that 32 to 36 percent respectively would not meet the benchmark.
ACT’s web site states that its college readiness benchmarks are the minimum ACT test scores required for students to have a high probability of success in credit-bearing college courses. The target composite score of 21 is the average of benchmarks for the subject areas of English, reading, mathematics and science.
But are District 15 and District 211 parents and taxpayers satisfied with just the minimum score? What range of scores is needed in order to be accepted into a four-year college?
Average ACT scores in 2006 for colleges in several states are available online. Back then an ACT composite score of 21 to 24 was the average for many of our state universities as well as several popular out-of-state colleges attended.
However highly selective colleges and universities require a much higher ACT score. For example, the average score for a University of Illinois at Urbana student in 2006 was 28.
As evidenced by a breakdown of ACT composite scores by Palatine and Fremd High School as well as student demographic, it is clear that the achievement gap seen in the eighth grade EXPLORE test carries through to the ACT. The percentage of students who scored a 19 or higher on EXPLORE can be directly related to the percentage of students scoring a 25 or higher on the ACT.
Does this mean a child’s academic destiny is determined in their elementary years? For the majority of children, it appears that it does.
There was very little decrease in the percentage of students who scored a 15 or below on the eighth grade EXPLORE exam and those who did not meet the minimum ACT benchmark score of 21.
What can District 15 do now to change course and increase the number of its graduates who are more than ready for the rigors of high school?
What can be done to identify all students – not just those declared “low enough” for extra help – but every student who needs that extra nudge throughout the grade levels?
Should the District 15 school board re-evaluate their decision last year to not make "Strengthening the Curriculum" a district goal? What priorities has our current school board identified over the past four years to increase student achievement?
Instead of telling us how many students "meet and exceed" on the Illinois State Achievement Test (ISAT) - let us know how well our students perform on the ACT-aligned EXPLORE test. That is a truer indicator of District 15's educational excellence.
Thirty-five percent of students not college ready? Surely this can't be "good enough" for a school district that proclaims to produce world-class learners.
barry morse
1:34 pm on Wednesday, December 15, 2010
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mary vanek
9:58 am on Wednesday, January 19, 2011
If you break down the numbers by race, it is clear that the white and especially the asian students are faring the best. The asian students do well not because they are inherently smarter, but because their parents make them work harder, especially in the areas of math and science. They routinely do extra work because the current curriculum is not rigorous enough. District 15 should not take too much credit for these success stories, because these parents and children go above and beyond what is required of them in our "world-class" learning community.
mary vanek
9:56 am on Wednesday, January 19, 2011
District 15 clearly needs to see what it can do to encourage the black and hispanic students to perform better in school. We cannot afford to just write them off as lost causes - we owe all of our children and our society more than that!
Frank
3:20 pm on Wednesday, January 19, 2011
I totally agree with you. I believe that the students who always perform better in school (regardless of race) are those whose parents are involved with their children's education and push their children to achieve more. I also believe that we need to get those parents of the lower performing students to be more involved in their children educational progress because no student should ever be considered a lost cause.
mary vanek
8:52 pm on Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Exactly! I feel that the District is writing these kids off. And the parents of white and asian kids can't afford to be complacent - we are all in this together, and the poor academic prospects of 25-30% of our students will impact us all.