Presented by ACT, Inc. at the 2014 NPEA conference on April 24-25, 2014 in Minneapolis, MN.

1. Readiness
Ma*ers
The
Impact
of
College
Readiness
on
College
Persistence
and
Degree
Comple8on
April
Hansen
ACT
Client
Rela0ons
april.hansen@act.org

2. ACT’s
Unique
Vantage
Point
• The
ACT
Assessment
began
in
1959
to
assess
what
students
have
already
learned
and
are
ready
to
learn
next
to
be
college
and
career
ready.
• 54%
of
the
2013
HS
gradua0ng
class
took
the
ACT:
1.8
million
students
• ACT
Aspire
(grades
3
&
10)
and
the
ACT
(grade
11
&
12)
form
a
longitudinal
assessment
system
that
can
provide
academic
interven0ons
and
shape
curriculum
to
keep
students
on
track
• ACT
Engage
Assessment
of
academic
behaviors,
psychosocial
factors

3. Percentage
of
students
taking
the
ACT
by
State

4.
The
level
of
prepara0on
a
student
needs
to
be
ready
to
enroll
and
succeed
in—without
remedia/on—a
first-­‐year,
credit-­‐bearing
course
at
two-­‐
or
four-­‐year
ins0tu0ons
or
in
trade
or
technical
schools.
Adopted
by
the
Common
Core
State
Standards
Ini/a/ve
How
do
we
define
College
and
Career
Ready?

5. 5
ACT College Readiness Benchmarks UPDATED
• Empirically derived
• 50% chance of achieving a B or higher or about a 75% chance of achieving
a C or higher in the corresponding credit-bearing college course
Test College Course ACT Plan The ACT8th Grade 9th Grade
English English Composition 13 14 15 18
Math College Algebra 17 18 19 22
Reading Social Sciences 16 17 18 22
Science Biology 18 19 20 23
NEW

6. Statements that describe what students are
likely to know and be able to do. 80% of students
who achieve a score in this range demonstrate
these skills.
And statements that provide suggestions to
progress to a higher level of achievement

7. What’s
the
number
of
American
high
school
students
who
drop
out
of
school,
every
day,
bored,
frustrated,
or
so
far
behind
that
they’ve
given
up?
Pop
Quiz
6,000

8. 8
• Many
students
are
not
prepared
to
meet
the
hurdles
they
face
throughout
the
academic
pipeline,
and
they
don’t
persist
and
succeed.
NCES
2010
Enter
9th
grade
HS
Graduate
Enter
College
College
Graduate
(Bachelor’s)
~100%
96.9%
74.9%
52.5%
29.0%
Leaky
Educa0onal
Pipeline

9. Students
who
are
college/career
ready
when
they
leave
high
school
have
a
significantly
higher
likelihood
of:
Enrolling
in
college
the
fall
following
high
school
graduaZon
PersisZng
to
a
second
year
at
the
same
insZtuZon
Earning
a
grade
of
B
or
higher
in
first-­‐year
college
courses
Earning
a
first-­‐year
college
GPA
of
3.0
or
higher
Not
needing
to
take
a
remedial
courses
GraduaZng
within
150%
of
Zme
Entering
the
job
market
with
significantly
higher
lifeZme
earning
potenZal.
Regardless
of
ethnicity
and
SES

10. 10
• Average ACT
Composite
score of 20.9
h]p://www.act.org/newsroom/data/2013/

12. First
Genera/on

13. 13

14. First
Genera/on

17. 1.
The
strongest
predictors
of
college
persistence
and
degree
comple0on
are:
prior
academic
achievement
and
course
selec0on
(rigorous
high
school
classes).
2.
Prior
academic
achievement
and
cogni0ve
ability
surpass
all
other
factors
in
their
influence
on
student
performance.
3.
Non-­‐academic
factors
can
influence
academic
performance,
reten0on
and
persistence,
but
cannot
subs0tute
for
it.
Research
is
the
FoundaZon

18. Key
Finding
1
Being
be]er
prepared
academically
for
college
improves
a
student’s
chances
of
comple0ng
a
college
degree.
Benchmarks
ma*er.

19. College
Success
by
Number
of
ACT
Benchmarks
Met

20. College
Success
by
ACT
Score/
Benchmark
A]ainment
• 53%
enrolled
in
a
4-­‐year
college
(80%
of
the
students
mee0ng
all
4
CRBs
enrolled
in
a
4
year
college)
• 18%
enrolled
in
a
2-­‐year
college
(6%
of
students
mee0ng
all
4
CRBs
enrolled
in
a
2-­‐year
college)
• 29%
did
not
enroll
in
college
(43%
of
the
0-­‐1
group
didn’t
go
to
college
at
all)

21. College
Success
by
ACT
Score/
Benchmark
A]ainment
• Across
all
outcomes,
– College
success
rates
increased
as
ACT
Composite
score
increased.
– Students
who
met
the
ACT
College
Readiness
Benchmarks
had
higher
success
rates
than
those
who
didn’t.
– The
more
Benchmarks
students
met,
the
higher
the
success
rates.

22. Coursework
Ma*ers
• Core
curriculum
taken
vs.
not
taken
(4-­‐3-­‐3-­‐3).
• HS
mathema0cs
coursework
taken:
– Less
than
(<)
Algebra
I,
Geometry,
Algebra
II.
– Algebra
I,
Geometry,
Algebra
II.
– More
than
(>)
Algebra
I,
Geometry,
Algebra
II.
• HS
science
coursework
taken
– Biology
– Biology,
Chemistry
– Biology,
Chemistry,
Physics

23. College
Enrollment/RetenZon
Rates
Math
Course
Sequence
Less than Alg 1,
Geom, Alg II
Alg 1, Geom, Alg II
Alg 1, Geom, Alg II,
Other Adv Math
Alg 1, Geom, Alg II
Other Adv Math,
Trig
Alg 1, Geom, Alg II,
Other Adv Math,
Trig, Calc
As
the
rigor
of
math
courses
increases,
the
chances
of
college
enrollment/persistence
also
increase.
Enrolled in college first year Re-enrolled in college
second year

24. College
Enrollment/RetenZon
Rates
Science
Course
Sequence
As
the
rigor
of
science
courses
increases,
the
chances
of
college
enrollment/persistence
also
increase.
Enrolled in college first year Re-enrolled in college
second year
Biology
Biology and
Chemistry
Biology,
Chemistry,
and Physics

25. First
Genera/on

26. First
Genera/on

27. Degree
Comple0on
by
HS
Coursework
and
Benchmark
A]ainment
in
Math

28. Key
Finding
2
Using
mul0ple
measures
of
college
readiness
be]er
informs
the
likelihood
of
a
student
persis0ng
and
succeeding
in
college.

29. College
Success
by
HS
GPA
and
HS
Coursework
• Across
all
outcomes,
– Students
with
HSGPAs
≥
3.50
had
higher
success
rates
than
those
who
had
lower
HSGPAs.
– Students
who
took
the
HS
core
curriculum
had
slightly
higher
rates
than
those
who
didn’t.
– Students
who
took
higher-­‐level
mathema0cs
or
science
courses
had
higher
rates
than
those
who
took
fewer
courses.

30. Degree
Comple0on
by
HS
GPA
and
ACT
Scores

33. Key
Finding
3
College
readiness
reduces
gaps
in
college
going
rates,
persistence
and
degree
comple0on
among
racial/ethnic
and
family
income
groups.

34. 6
year
bachelor’s
degree
comple0on
rates
for
racial/ethnic
and
income
groups

36. College
Success
by
Family
Income
and
Number
of
ACT
Benchmarks
Met

37. College
Success
by
Race/Ethnicity
and
Number
of
ACT
Benchmarks
Met

38. The
Impact
of
Readiness

39. All
College ready
in 4 subjects
Reductions in Racial/Ethnic Gaps in College Enrollment Associated with
Meeting All Four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks
Enrolled in college first year
Gap reduction:
8 percentage
points
White
Underrepresented minorities
75
61
84
78
14
6

40. All
College ready
in 4 subjects
Reductions in Racial/Ethnic Gaps in College Retention Rates Associated
with Meeting All Four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks
Re-enrolled in college second year
Gap reduction:
5 percentage
points
White
Underrepresented minorities
74
68
84
83
6
1

41. All
College ready
in 4 subjects
Reductions in Family Income Gaps in College Enrollment Rates
Associated with Meeting All Four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks
Enrolled in college first year
Gap reduction:
16 percentage
points
Highest family income group
Lowest family income group
82
58
85
77
24
8

42. All
College ready
in 4 subjects
Reductions in Family Income Gaps in College Retention Rates Associated
with Meeting All Four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks
Re-enrolled in college second year
Gap reduction:
5 percentage
points
Highest family income group
Lowest family income group
79
66
86
78
13
8

43. All
College ready
in 4 subjects
Reductions in Racial/Ethnic Gaps in 4-Year College Degree Completion Rates
Associated with Meeting All Four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks
Graduated from college in 4 years
Gap reduction:
5 percentage
points
White
Underrepresented minorities
39
26
86
78
13
8

44. Key
Finding
4
Early
monitoring
of
readiness
is
associated
with
increased
college
success.

45. Catching
up
to
College
Readiness
“…the
level
of
academic
achievement
that
students
a]ain
by
eighth
grade
has
a
larger
impact
on
their
college
and
career
readiness
by
the
0me
they
graduate
from
high
school
than
anything
that
happens
academically
in
high
school”
-­‐-­‐The
Forgo?en
Middle,
p.2

46. Findings
of
“Catching
Up”
Study
• Few
Far
Off
Track
students
catch
up
in
middle
or
high
school.
• Even
in
higher
performing
schools,
the
majority
do
not
get
on
track
to
college
and
career
readiness
in
four
years.
• There
are
lots
of
Far
Off
Track
students
by
this
defini0on
–
for
example,
40-­‐50%
of
minority
students…
• …and
they
have
a
low
probability
of
hiqng
the
Benchmark
in
four
years.

47. College
Success
by
Readiness
Indicators
in
Grades
8,
10,
and
11/12
• Early
readiness
indicators
are
predic0ve
of
college
success.
• Early
and
sustained
college
readiness
in
high
school
is
associated
with
persis0ng
to
degree
comple0on.
– Students
who
were
on
target
early
in
grades
8
and
10
for
becoming
college
and
career
ready
and
then
graduated
from
high
school
college
and
career
ready
had
the
highest
college
success
rates.
– Students
who
were
not
on
target
in
grades
8,
10,
and
11/12
had
the
lowest
success
rates.

49. Readiness
Ma]ers
Key
Findings
• Being
be]er
prepared
academically
for
college
improves
a
student’s
chances
of
comple0ng
a
college
degree.
• Using
mul0ple
measures
of
college
readiness
be]er
informs
the
likelihood
of
a
student
persis0ng
and
succeeding
in
college.
• College
readiness
reduces
gaps
in
persistence
and
degree
comple0on
among
racial/ethnic
and
family
income
groups.
• Early
monitoring
of
readiness
is
associated
with
increased
college
success.

50. Overall
Recommenda0ons
1. Evaluate
the
rigor
and
content
of
high
school
courses
in
English,
mathema0cs,
reading,
and
science
and
align
the
curricular
content
with
college
readiness
standards
and
the
skills
that
are
needed
to
be
successful
in
college
and
career.
h]p://www.act.org/standard/
2. Monitor
early
and
oren
student’s
progress
towards
becoming
ready
for
college
and
intervene
with
students
who
are
not
on
target
while
there
is
s0ll
0me
for
them
to
catch
up
before
they
graduate
from
high
school

51. Overall
Recommenda0ons
3. Help
students
develop
strong
academic
behaviors
that
can
enhance
student
success.
h]p://www.act.org/engage/
4.
Provide
all
students
with
educa0onal
and
career
guidance
by
doing
the
following:
– Help
them
to
understand
how
preparing
well
now
academically
is
cri0cal
for
accomplishing
their
future
career
goals.
– Encourage
them
to
explore
personally-­‐relevant
career
op0ons
based
on
their
own
skills,
interests,
and
aspira0ons.
– h]p://www.act.org/profile/
– Make
available
useful
informa0on
and
resources
about
the
college
admissions
process
and
financial
aid
process
to
them
and
their
parents,
and
assist
them
with
these
processes
– h]p://www.actstudent.org/

52. Ques0ons/Comments
April
Hansen
Client
Rela0ons
april.hansen@act.org