With an official switch back to the ACT exam, Oak Park and River Forest High School District 209 will be looking to bring in services to help students prepare for the college readiness assessment.
“We have outside agencies that will come in and provide ACT support or test prep, just like we did for SAT prep,” said Lauri Fiorenza, assistant superintendent for student learning at D200.
Prep courses offered would be optional and be an out-of-pocket expense for students. Need-based financial aid may be available, according to the district’s website.
Fiorenza said the district is “exploring” those options, but no decision has been made on which company will be contracted to provide the optional ACT prep.
In the past the district had used ExcelEdge, a test preparation company, to provide a seven-week test prep program for PSAT/NMSQT assessments.
The Illinois State Board of Education announced that beginning next spring, high school students will take the ACT exam rather than the SAT, which had been the required test since 2016. Prior to 2016, the required test was the ACT.
Juniors will be taking the required ACT in the spring, with sophomores taking the PreACT Secure and freshman students taking the PreACT 9 Secure.
According to federal law, Every Student Succeeds Act, which was passed in 2015, requires all states to administer an accountability assessment to high school students. Illinois state law gives districts the option between the ACT or SAT, as the exam must be nationally recognized.
According to ISBE, the switch back to the ACT was driven by the contract with the College Board for the high school accountability assessment ending in June 2024. A new $53 million contract was awarded to ACT based on technical specifications, commitment to diversity and price.
The new contract with ACT will run through the 2029-30 school year.
State Superintendent of Education Tony Sanders shared the news in a weekly message back in May that not only does the ACT “align to the Illinois Learning Standards,” but it also provides secure online testing, reduces administrative burden on districts, and is accessible and actionable in reporting.
“I understand the effect that changing assessment vendors has on the work that schools do to prepare students for success,” Sanders said. “ISBE’s Assessment Department will partner with ACT once the contract is executed to provide ample support to the field.”
The state administered test will include mathematics, reading, science, writing and English language arts.
Fiorenza said ACT prep is very similar to SAT prep, with those skills integrated into daily lesson plans.
“Through the curriculum and through the educational opportunities provided here in Oak Park we will continue to ensure they are well prepared to be as successful as possible on the ACT test,” Fiorenza said.
Students will also not be required to take a separate Illinois Science Assessment as juniors as science is incorporated into the testing subjects with the ACT. This will cut down on testing time, ISBE said.
Fiorenza said that students will still be able to take the SAT if they chose to.
According to the OPRF website, PSAT/NMSQT testing for sophomores and juniors will still be offered in October. The test offers students scholarship and recognition programs through the National Merit Corporation and the National Hispanic Recognition Program.
In recent years, there has been a national drop in the number of colleges and universities requiring either the ACT or SAT.
But testing score requirements have been coming under fire in the past years, highlighting concerns over equity gaps affecting students of color, low-income students, and students with disabilities. According to Higher Ed Drive, making admissions test scores option at private colleges showed “modest” enrollment increases within underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, low-income students, and women.
Additionally, studies, including a UChicago Consortium study found that a student’s GPA is a better measure of college readiness than ACT or SAT testing scores.
While some higher ed schools had already opted out of requiring scores, the COVID-19 pandemic forced the closure of many testing locations. This contributed to the increase in removal of the ACT/SAT score requirement from college admission packages.
According to FairTest, the National Center for Fair & Open Testing, more than 80% of U.S. four-year colleges and universities will not require scores for fall 2025 applications.
According to Quad Education, an educational consultant firm, many universities including Brown University, Columbia University, and Dartmouth College had made the change permanent for now. Others, such as MIT, have chosen to reinstate. According to MIT Admissions, their ability to accurately predict a student’s success at their school greatly improves by considering testing scores.
In Illinois, lawmakers passed the 2021 Higher Education Fair Admissions Act, which created a “test-optional” policy for admissions for state public universities and community colleges. According to Illinois State Democrats, State Senator Christopher Belt (D-Swansea) tests scores do not showcase a student’s ability.
“Students struggle each year to do well on ACT and SAT tests,” Belt said. “Removing this requirement will help test-anxious students get into college.”
A list of testing dates and registration deadlines can be found at OPRF’s website.
Correction, July 23, 2024: In a previous version Lauri Fiorenza was incorrectly identified as “Lori” Fiorenza. This story has been updated to reflect the change.