Palmer Ridge High School
April 6, 2015
ACT ASPIRE RESULTS NOW AVAILABLE!
Dear Parent/Guardian,
The results from the fall administration of the ACT Aspire are now available in the Infinite
Campus Parent Portal. These assessments have been given in the district for some time, but
were known as the ACT Explore and Plan. This is the first year of the newly developed ACT
Aspire, and therefore the data associated with the test took longer to produce and
interpret. The main difference between the Aspire and the Explore and Plan tests hinges on
the college and career readiness standards. We have attached some information about ACT
Aspire, the college and career readiness standards, as well as some additional links to help
you interpret your child’s score.
GO BEARS!
ACT COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS STANDARDS
ACT College and Career Readiness Standards help students understand the
meaning of the scores earned in ACT Aspire and the ACT® college readiness assessment.
For parents, teachers, counselors, and students, these scores can:

Communicate widely shared learning goals and educational expectations

Relate test scores to skills that lead to success in high school and beyond

Unpack the complex set of skills students need to develop in English, mathematics, reading, science, and
writing
ACT Aspire and the ACT measure student development of knowledge and skills in the same academic areas from
grades 3 through 12. The scores from these assessments can help educators monitor students’ academic growth over
time.
The ACT College and Career Readiness Standards serve as a link between what students have learned and what they
are ready to learn next. The Standards are also linked to college instruction. More than 40 years of research has
shown that performance on the ACT is directly related to first-year college grade point average. ACT also conducts
a regular survey of college instructors to ensure that the Standards are aligned to college-level work.
ACT COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS BENCHMARKS
How the ACT Readiness Benchmarks Were Created:
The ACT Readiness Benchmarks for grades 8 to 11 were obtained based on the concordance analysis. The ACT
Readiness Benchmarks for grades 3 to 7 were back-mapped based on grade 8’s concorded ACT Readiness
Benchmark values, using the z-score approach. For those grades, the ACT Readiness Benchmarks were the ACT
Aspire scores that had the same standardized scores as those for the grade 8 Benchmarks.
What the ACT Readiness Benchmarks Mean:
The ACT Readiness Benchmarks on the ACT Aspire scale for students in grades 8 to 10 are the concorded values
that correspond to the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks on the ACT Explore/ACT Plan scale and are taken from
the ACT Explore/ACT Plan to ACT Aspire concordance table. The meaning of the ACT College Readiness
Benchmarks on ACT Explore/ACT Plan is carried over to the ACT Aspire scale through the concordance. Students
who are at and above the Benchmark are on track to have a high probability of future success in first-year college
courses.
FAST FACTS

Vertically articulated, standards-based system of summative, interim, and classroom assessments

Linked to ACT College Readiness Benchmarks and aligned with the Common Core State Standards

Anchored by the capstone college readiness assessment, the ACT

Multiple question types: constructed response, selected response, and technology-enhanced

Subject areas: English, math, reading, science, and writing for grades 3–8 and early high school (grades 9–10)

Modular administration of subjects and grades available

Online delivery of assessments with traditional paper-and-pencil option
REPORTING
In addition to subject scores, there are reporting categories based on the ACT
College and Career Readiness Standards and aligned to the other sets of college and career readiness standards being
used by states (of which the Common Core State Standards are one).
Along with valuable new measures of readiness (STEM scores, text complexity, etc.), there is deeper, more valuable
data that will enable educators to better inform instruction and parents to better understand their student’s progress.
Student score reports are available to download or print, and can be distributed to students and parents.
SCORING
ACT Aspire results are reported on a 3-digit score scale. We also report an “ACT
Readiness Benchmark” for English, reading, writing, math and science at each grade level to provide additional
perspectives on student readiness. Users can use the new ACT Readiness Benchmarks from grades 3–10 to
determine if students are on track for readiness at the appropriate grade/subject levels.
A composite score is provided for all students who receive scores in English, math, reading, and science beginning
at grades 8–10.
In the ACT Aspire development process, we worked with educators, students, and parents, to better understand their
reporting requirements. Careful effort ensures that the final product will connect teaching and learning in ways that
are valuable to all levels of stakeholders. To that end, ACT Aspire reporting philosophy follows these guiding
principles, based on User-Centered Design.
Reports display information in a clean, direct manner — with both numerical and graphical representations
supported by descriptive text. Thus, the full range of faculty – from novice through expert — can immediately gain
actionable insights.
Current Progress Sample
English | Reading | Writing | Science
Math | Summary
Additional Information:
Standards and Benchmarks: http://www.discoveractaspire.org/assessments/standards-benchmarks/
Reports: http://www.discoveractaspire.org/assessments/reports/
Test Items: http://www.discoveractaspire.org/assessments/test-items/
Scale Score: http://www.discoveractaspire.org/assessments/score-scale/