65-616: The Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test , or the FCAT/FCAT 2.0 , was the standardized test used in the primary and secondary public schools of Florida. First administered statewide in 1998, it replaced the State Student Assessment Test (SSAT) and the High School Competency Test (HSCT). As of the 2014-2015 school year FCAT was replaced in the state of Florida. The Florida Department of Education later implemented
130-621: A college degree. To develop the test, ACT incorporates the objectives for instruction from middle and high schools throughout the United States, reviews approved textbooks for subjects taught in Grades 7–12, and surveys educators on which knowledge skills are relevant to success in postsecondary education . ACT publishes a technical manual that summarizes studies conducted on its validity in predicting freshman GPA, equating different high school GPAs, and measuring educational achievement. Colleges use
195-734: A competitor to the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) . The ACT originally consisted of four tests: English , Mathematics , Social Studies , and Natural Sciences . In 1989, however, the Social Studies test was changed into a Reading section (which included a social sciences subsection), and the Natural Sciences test was renamed the Science Reasoning test, with more emphasis on problem-solving skills as opposed to memorizing scientific facts. In February 2005, an optional Writing Test
260-507: A composite score of 36 on the ACT between the years of 1997 and 2023. The ACT Assessment Student Report, at ACT.org, provides the typical ACT Composite averages for college and universities admission policies. They caution that "because admission policies vary across colleges, the score ranges should be considered rough guidelines." Following is a list of the average composite scores that typically are accepted at colleges or universities. The ACT
325-552: A computer, generally on a standard model for all students to guarantee fairness. If the test has not been completed within the 160-minute session, test-takers may continue working for the remainder of the school day. FCAT Explorer was an internet-based tool designed to help Florida students in grades 3–11 pass the FCAT by focusing on mastery of the Sunshine State Standards through several interactive programs. Each student received
390-491: A gender. 2,760 students in the graduating class of 2017 received the highest ACT composite score of 36. The following chart shows, for each ACT score from 11 to 36, the corresponding ACT percentile and equivalent total SAT score or score range. (Concordance data for ACT scores less than 11 is not yet available for the current version of the SAT.) Note that ACT percentiles are defined as the percentage of test takers scoring at or below
455-402: A grade from A to F, based on what percentage of students pass the exams and what percentage of both the entire student body and the bottom 25% of the school demonstrate adequate growth on the exam over their previous year's performance. If a school improves a letter grade (including schools that improve from an F to a D), or maintains an A, the state direct-deposits "reward money" to the school in
520-554: A gradual increase in the number of test takers since its inception, and in 2012 the ACT surpassed the SAT for the first time in total test takers; that year, 1,666,017 students took the ACT and 1,664,479 students took the SAT. ACT, Inc., says that the ACT assessment measures high school students' general educational development and their capability to complete college-level work with the multiple choice tests covering four skill areas: English, mathematics, reading, and science. The optional Writing Test measures skill in planning and writing
585-444: A harsh critic of the FCAT and ran for several offices to highlight her opposition to the exam. Castagnero called the test "unconstitutional" during her 2006 campaign for governor and stated during her 2008 congressional campaign that "children are being terrorized with a test called FCAT." Writers such as Diane Ravitch claim that high-stakes testing is driven by corporate interests rather than student and teacher interests. As of
650-423: A high school diploma, despite having excellent grade point averages and having completed all course requirements for a high school diploma. The FCAT is either machine-scored or hand-scored, depending on the section. Multiple-choice and gridded-response questions are machine-scored. Performance tasks, such as short-response, extended-response, and essay items, are hand-scored. Like several other standardized tests,
715-483: A high school diploma. Grade 3 and graduation are the only two instances in which federal or state statute require passage of the FCAT; it is given at the other grades for the intention of providing diagnostic information, both on students and schools. However, many counties in the state have adopted other promotional requirements tied to the FCAT, but these are at the discretion of each individual county school board. Exceptional education (ESE) students were able to waive
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#1732859063006780-402: A matter of accommodation for certain disabilities or other impairments. Score reports provided to students taking the ACT test include the ranks (or cumulative percents) for each score and subscore received by the student. Each rank gives the percentage of recently tested students in the U.S. who scored at or below the given student's score. The following table shows the ACT national ranks as of
845-534: A national perspective. The majority of colleges do not indicate a preference for the SAT or ACT exams and accept both, being treated equally by most admissions officers. According to " Uni in the USA ," colleges that also require students to take the SAT Subject Tests do so regardless of whether the candidate took the SAT or ACT; however, some colleges accept the ACT in place of the SAT subject tests and some accept
910-432: A no. 2 pencil, or considered illegible after several attempts at reading. The subscores from the two different readers are summed to produce final domain scores from 2 to 12 (or 0) in each of the four categories. If the two readers' subscores differ by more than one point, then a senior third reader makes the final decision on the score. The four domain scores are combined through a process that has not been described to create
975-440: A paragraph and paragraphs in a passage) – and sentence structure – constructing sentences in a stylistically and grammatically correct manner. The second section is a 60-minute, 60-question math test with the usual distribution of questions being approximately 14 covering pre-algebra , 10 elementary algebra , 9 intermediate algebra, 14 plane geometry , 9 coordinate geometry , and 4 elementary trigonometry questions. However,
1040-479: A short essay. Specifically, ACT states that its scores provide an indicator of "college readiness", and that scores in each of the subtests correspond to skills in entry-level college courses in English, algebra, social science, humanities, and biology. According to a research study conducted by ACT, Inc. in 2003, there was a relationship between a student's ACT composite score and the probability of that student earning
1105-500: A unique username and password to access these programs, and schools in Florida often set aside time during the day to work specifically on FCAT Explorer. The domain is now for sale. High School Competency Test The High School Competency Test , or HSCT , was a test used by all public high schools in the state of Florida from 1981 until the implementation of the FCAT in 1998 (which
1170-399: A writing section score between 1 and 36. Note that the domain scores are not added to create the writing section score. Although the writing section is optional, many colleges require an essay score and will factor it into the admissions decision (but fewer than half of all colleges have this requirement). For the "enhanced" version of the ACT introduced in 1989, the mean score of each of
1235-456: Is 50%. Originally, the score sheet was labeled that additional time was granted due to a learning disability; however, this was ultimately dropped because it was deemed illegal under the Americans with Disabilities Act and could be perceived as an unfair designator of disability. Scores are sent to the student, their high school, and up to four colleges of the student's choice (optional). Time
1300-467: Is a major factor to consider in testing. The ACT is generally regarded as being composed of somewhat easier questions versus the SAT , but the shorter time allotted to complete each section increases difficulty. The ACT allows: Comparatively, the SAT is structured such that the test taker is allowed at least one minute per question, on generally shorter sections (25 or fewer questions). Times may be adjusted as
1365-522: Is accepted by all four-year colleges and universities in the United States as well as more than 225 universities outside of the U.S. The main four ACT test sections are individually scored on a scale of 1–36, and a composite score (the rounded whole number average of the four sections) is provided. The ACT was first introduced in November 1959 by University of Iowa professor Everett Franklin Lindquist as
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#17328590630061430-439: Is not the sum of the subscores). In addition, students taking the optional writing test receive a writing score ranging from 2 to 12 (this is a change from the previous 1–36 score range); the writing score does not affect the composite score. Prior to September 2015, there was a Combined English/Writing score, which was a 36-point combination of the 36-point English Test score and the 12-point Writing subscore. The ACT has eliminated
1495-528: Is offered seven times a year in the United States and its territories, Puerto Rico, and Canada: in September, October, December, February, April, June, and July. (In New York State, the test is not offered in July.) In other locations, the ACT is offered five times a year: in September, October, December, April, and June. The ACT is offered only on Saturdays except for those with credible religious obligations, who may take
1560-562: Is the 45-minute English test covering usage /mechanics, sentence structure , and rhetorical skills. The 75-question test consists of five passages with various sections underlined on one side of the page and options to correct the underlined portions on the other side of the page. Specifically, questions focus on usage and mechanics – issues such as commas, apostrophes, (misplaced/dangling) modifiers, colons, and fragments and run-ons – as well as on rhetorical skills – style (clarity and brevity), strategy, transitions, and organization (sentences in
1625-783: The Midwestern , Rocky Mountain , and Southern United States , whereas the SAT is more popular on the East and West coasts. Recently, however, the ACT is being used more on the East Coast. Use of the ACT by colleges has risen as a result of various criticisms of the effectiveness and fairness of the SAT. The required portion of the ACT is divided into four multiple-choice subject tests: English , mathematics , reading , and science reasoning . Subject test scores range from 1 to 36; all scores are integers . The English, mathematics, and reading tests also have subscores ranging from 1 to 18 (the subject score
1690-476: The 2010-2011 school year it has been called the "FCAT 2.0" On actual test material it is labeled "FCAT 2.0 Next Generation Sunshine State Standards." As of the 2014-2015 school year, many grades do not take the FCAT, and it has now been formally replaced with the Florida Standards Assessments (FSA). When originally introduced, students in fourth grade were required to pass the reading portion of
1755-609: The 2010–11 school year, high school students in Florida in grades (9–12) will be required to pass End-of-Course exams for eligibility to obtain credit in the course in which the EOC exam was administered. The End-of-Course Assessments are being used to replace the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT).The Algebra I EOC exam was the first end-of-course exam to be administered for Florida back in Spring 2011. As of now,
1820-508: The 2020-21 school year. The College Board (the developer of the SAT) and ACT, Inc. compared scores from about 600,000 students who were graduating in 2017 and who took both the SAT (2016 revision) and the ACT in 2016 and 2017. The following table shows, for each ACT composite score in the data set, the corresponding range of SAT total scores for students with the same percentile rank on each test. The most appropriate corresponding SAT score point for
1885-498: The ACT and the SAT because there are substantial differences in funding, curricula, grading, and difficulty among U.S. secondary schools due to American federalism , local control, the prevalence of private, distance, homeschooled students, and lack of a rigorous college entrance examination system similar those used in some other countries. ACT scores are used to supplement the secondary school record and help admission officers put local data—such as coursework, grades, and class rank—in
1950-528: The Algebra I EOC Exam, but also the Biology EOC to earn a high school diploma. The End-of-Course exams are used to ensure that the student has learned all the content in the course. End-of-Course exams are not required for students with specific learning disabilities . All EOCs are administered school-wide throughout a week, ensuring no issues occur while students are signing into the program. The exams are taken on
2015-527: The Combined English/writing score and has added two new combined scores: ELA (an average of the English, Reading, and Writing scores) and STEM (an average of the Math and Science scores). These changes for the writing, ELA, and STEM scores were effective starting with the September 2015 test. Each question answered correctly is worth one raw point, and there is no penalty for marking incorrect answers on
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2080-412: The FCAT requirement to get a Standard High School Diploma. Those ESE students wishing to obtain a regular high school diploma must score a passing grade on the FCAT or receive a waiver for the FCAT. In order to get the waiver, ESE students must prove that they have taken several steps to try to pass the FCAT and must also show that they have improved every time they have taken the test. A student failing
2145-592: The FCAT, may still be allowed to graduate with a certificate of completion. Students may substitute the appropriate subject-area score from either the ACT or SAT. A score of 19 on either the Reading or Mathematics sections of the ACT or a 280 on the Reading and a 370 on the Mathematics sections of the SAT can be used to waive the FCAT requirement after the student has failed the 10th grade test at least three times. Students may earn
2210-461: The FCAT. Students may also transfer their credits to a private or out-of-state school. Several high schools in North Carolina and South Carolina regularly market in Florida on radio stations annually during the spring and early summer, advertising their 'service' that is available to 'graduating' Florida high school students who for whatever reason failed to pass the FCAT and were unable to receive
2275-436: The Florida Standards Assessments (FSA) for English Language Arts, Reading, Mathematics and a Writing or typing test. A Comprehensive science test is still used for grades 5 and 8. The FCAT (Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test) was administered annually, in late February and early to mid-March as well as April, to all public school students in grades three through eleven. Students in grades three through ten are required to take
2340-475: The HSCT instead of the FCAT, if they so wished. Even today, theoretically, a student (who would now be in their mid- to late twenties, at least) who had not graduated because of failing the HSCT can request a readministration of the test in order to get their high school diploma. In practice, such a test would probably need to be administered by a community college ; many of the state's community colleges continue to use
2405-455: The HSCT were allowed unlimited opportunities to retake sections that they had failed, with such retests routinely administered by school faculty, thus making enforcement of the "must pass" proviso problematic, at best. The test was phased out early in Jeb Bush 's first administration, though students who entered high school before the creation of the FCAT were grandfathered in and allowed to take
2470-557: The HSCT within their adult studies departments. ACT (examination) The ACT ( / eɪ s iː t iː / ; originally an abbreviation of American College Testing ) is a standardized test used for college admissions in the United States . It is administered by ACT, Inc. , a for-profit organization of the same name. The ACT test covers four academic skill areas: English , mathematics , reading , and scientific reasoning . It also offers an optional direct writing test. It
2535-457: The amount of $ 75 per student enrolled (this amount used to be $ 100 before the 2008 recession). This money is not collectively bargained or funneled through the recipient school's district. Schools can use the money for staff bonuses, educational equipment, materials related to boosting student performance, or to hire temporary personnel to assist in improving student performance. Most of the money typically goes toward teacher bonuses, however. As of
2600-512: The concordant passing score prior to taking the FCAT Retake Reading or Mathematics examination three times, but they cannot substitute it in lieu of the passing FCAT score until they have taken the FCAT Retake Reading or Mathematics examination three times. In any case, students will receive a Certificate of Completion that allows for admittance in any state community college for which they have met all graduation requirements apart from passing
2665-435: The core subjects such as English. Another point of criticism on the FCAT is that all students of the same grade take the same test, despite the fact that different students are enrolled in different courses. To compensate for this, in many schools, teachers are directed to cover FCAT skills, regardless of what subject they are supposed to be covering. Retired teacher and Lakeland political activist Carol Castagnero has been
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2730-553: The distribution of question topics varies from test to test. The difficulty of questions usually increases as a test taker moves on to higher question numbers. Calculators are permitted in this section only. The calculator requirements are stricter than the SAT's in that computer algebra systems (such as the TI-89 ) are not allowed; however, the ACT permits calculators with paper tapes , that make noise (but must be disabled), or that have power cords with certain "modifications" (i.e., disabling
2795-400: The exact manner in which ACT scores will help to determine admission of a student at American institutions of higher learning is generally a matter decided by the individual institution, some foreign countries have made ACT (and SAT) scores a legal criterion in deciding whether holders of American high school diplomas will be admitted at their public universities. The ACT is more widely used in
2860-447: The following EOC exams are being administered for Florida: Algebra I, Geometry, Biology, U.S. History. For the 2010–11 school year, the Algebra I EOC exam was worth 30% of the student's final grade. As for the 2011–12 school year, the Algebra I EOC exam was pass or fail. The students must achieve a 70% score (Level 3) or higher to be considered passing the Algebra I EOC exam. For 2012–13 school year, incoming ninth graders must pass not only
2925-439: The four tests, as well as the mean composite score, was scaled to be 18, with an intended standard error of measurement of 2 for the four test scores and 1 for the composite score. These statistics vary from year to year for current populations of ACT takers. The chart below summarizes each section and the average test score based on graduating high school seniors in 2023. The table below summarizes how many students achieved
2990-479: The fourth, eighth, and tenth grades, public school students take the FCAT Writes exam (formerly called "Florida Writes!" and "FCAT Writing+"); unlike the other tests, the FCAT Writes exam is administered in early February to allow adequate time for scoring before the end of the school year. Students' results from the FCAT are compiled to generate a grade for each public school. Under this plan, public schools receive
3055-448: The given ACT score is also shown in the table. The data in this section pertains to the SAT prior to the 2016 redesign. Comparisons to SAT scores are not valid after the 2017 graduating class. Sixty percent—about 2.03 million students—of the 2017 high school graduating class took the ACT. For the graduating class of 2017, the average composite score was a 21.0. Of these test-takers, 46% were male and 52% were female, with 2% not reporting
3120-414: The goal of giving students additional flexibility when taking the ACT exam. The optional writing section, which is always administered at the end of the test, is 40 minutes (increasing from the original 30-minute time limit on the September 2015 test). While no particular essay structure is required, the essays must be in response to a given prompt; the prompts are about broad social issues (changing from
3185-635: The levels and kinds of text commonly encountered in first-year college curriculum . This reading test assesses skills in three general categories: key ideas and details, craft and structure, and integration of knowledge and ideas. Test questions will usually ask students to derive meaning from texts referring to what is explicitly stated or by reasoning to determine implicit meanings. Specifically, questions will ask students to use referring and reasoning skills to determine main ideas; locate and interpret significant details; understand sequences of events; make comparisons; comprehend cause-effect relationships; determine
3250-640: The meaning of context-dependent words, phrases, and statements; draw generalizations; and analyze the author's or narrator's voice and method. The optional science section is a 35-minute, 40-question test. There are seven passages each followed by five to seven questions. The passages have three different formats: Data Representation, Research Summary, and Conflicting Viewpoints. While the format used to be very predictable (i.e. there were always three Data Representation passages with 5 questions following each, 3 Research Summary passages with six questions each, and one Conflicting Viewpoints passage with 7 questions), when
3315-678: The mentioned features), which the SAT does not allow. Standard graphing calculators , such as the TI-83 and TI-84, are allowed. Within the TI-Nspire family, the standard and CX versions are allowed while the CX CAS is not. This is the only section that has five answer choices per question instead of four. The reading section is a 35-minute, 40-question test that consists of four sections, three of which contain one long prose passage and one which contains two shorter prose passages. The passages are representative of
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#17328590630063380-405: The multiple-choice parts of the test; a student can answer all questions without a decrease in their score due to incorrect answers. This is parallel to several AP Tests eliminating the penalties for incorrect answers. To improve the result, students can retake the test: 55% of students who retake the ACT improve their scores, 22% score the same, and 23% see their scores decrease. The first section
3445-404: The number of passages was reduced from 7 to 6, more variability in the number of each passage type started to appear. But so far, there is still always only one Conflicting Viewpoints passage. These changes are very recent, and the only reference to them so far is in the recently released practice test on the ACT website. The science section was mandatory until 2024, when it was made optional with
3510-657: The old prompts which were directly applicable to teenagers), and students must analyze three different perspectives given and show how their opinion relates to these perspectives. The essay does not affect the composite score or the English section score; it is only given as a separate writing score and is included in the ELA score. Two trained readers assign each essay subscores between 1 and 6 in four different categories: Ideas and Analysis, Development and Support, Organization, Language Use and Conventions. Scores of 0 are reserved for essays that are blank, off-topic, non-English, not written with
3575-422: The optional ACT Writing section in place of an SAT Subject Test. Most colleges use ACT scores as only one factor in the admission process. A sampling of ACT admissions scores shows that the 75th percentile composite score was 24.1 at public four-year institutions and 25.3 at private four-year institutions. In addition, some states and individual school districts have used the ACT to assess student learning and/or
3640-500: The performance of schools, requiring all high school students to take the ACT, regardless of whether they are college bound. Colorado and Illinois were the first to incorporate the ACT as part of their mandatory testing program in 2001. Other states followed suit in subsequent years. During the 2018–2019 school year, 13 states will administer the ACT test to all public school 11th graders, and another six states will fund ACT test administration as an option or choice for districts. While
3705-426: The program takes funding from schools which need it most. It has also been criticized by many students and teachers because the schools put too much emphasis on the FCAT and not enough on preparing students for the real world. The FCAT tests have also come under fire from education groups and parents for encouraging teachers to teach students how to pass a test, rather than to teach students the fundamental material in
3770-404: The raw score does not directly reflect the final score; some questions are considered to be of a higher difficulty level than others and, therefore, carry more scoring weight. This type of scoring is called Item Response Theory (IRT). Though the system was designed to reward public schools for excellence in teaching, many educators and community members have criticized the program, claiming that
3835-538: The reading and math portion every year. Private and parochial school students are not required to take the FCAT; most of these schools administer another standardized test instead, such as the Stanford Achievement Test , which is exactly the same as the FCAT NRT, formerly taken by public school students. FCAT Science is administered annually to public school students in the fifth, eighth, and eleventh grades. In
3900-498: The summer between school years. Students, however, may not retake the Grade 10 FCAT during the summer between their sophomore and junior year because additional time is needed for remediation. If students do not pass the FCAT prior to their scheduled graduation, they may continue to retake it until they pass it to earn a standard high school diploma. Students completing the minimum number of credits for high school graduation, but not passing
3965-465: The tenth grade test—that is, the test required for graduation—is allowed approximately five additional opportunities to pass it prior to graduation. Originally, students were given four more chances to pass the test after failing it in 10th grade—in October and March of both their junior and senior years in high school. However, starting in 2006, students were provided an additional test administration during
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#17328590630064030-600: The test in order to be promoted to the fifth grade. After passage of the No Child Left Behind Act by the United States Congress in 2001, the mandatory passage was moved from fourth grade down to third grade, so as to align Florida with federal statutory requirements. In addition to the third grade requirement, public school students in Florida must also pass the tenth grade FCAT, not only in reading, but also in mathematics, in order to be eligible to receive
4095-470: The test on another day. The ACT is designed, administered, and scored so that there is no advantage to testing on one particular date. Candidates may choose either the ACT assessment ($ 63.00), or the ACT assessment plus writing ($ 88.00). Students with verifiable disabilities, including physical and learning disabilities, are eligible to take the test with accommodations. The standard time increase for students requiring additional time due to disabilities
4160-507: Was added to the ACT. By the fall of 2017, computer-based ACT tests were available for school-day testing in limited school districts of the US, with greater availability expected in fall of 2018. In July 2024, the ACT announced that the test duration was shortened; the science section, like the writing one, would become optional; and online testing would be rolled out nationally in spring 2025 and for school-day testing in spring 2026. The ACT has seen
4225-483: Was then replaced by FSA (Florida Standard Assessments) in 1999). First mandated by the State Board of Education in 1977, it was the first attempt by the state to ensure that school districts across the state were being held to at least some minimal standards of accountability. The test was administered to all public high school juniors. Passage was required in order to be issued a high school diploma . Students failing
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