Knowing where we stand is critical – The PLAN Test

It is no secret that schools are vital pieces of strong and vibrant communities. Boone County is blessed to have excellent schools that have strong parental and community support. To continue our shared growth and success, it is critical that our schools and communities work together even more; as the landscape of education in Kentucky is dramatically changing with the adoption of the common core standards and the new state assessment system.

Most people, if asked, might tell you that they are familiar with the ACT test. Along with the SAT, the ACT test is a generally recognized and accepted college entrance exam. In fact, many adults took the ACT when they were in high school. It is also common knowledge that a student’s scores on the ACT play an important part in their admission to college and whether or not they receive scholarship awards for college.

However, how many people know about the PLAN test or the EXPLORE test? These two tests are precursors to the ACT and can provide a lot of information to help our students, our parents and our schools in making sure our students are adequately prepared for life after high school.

The ACT, PLAN, and EXPLORE tests are all developed by the same organization, the ACT corporation. Kentucky is one of many states where all public schools administer the EXPLORE test in grade 8, the PLAN test in grade 10, and the ACT test in grade 11. Each of these tests is written to assess what the ACT calls the College Readiness Standards. Together these three tests measure students’ progressive development of knowledge and skills on the College Readiness Standards in English, math, reading, and science from grades 8 through 11.

One thing that is very important for every student and every parent to know is that these three tests will provide a measuring stick for whether or not a student is on-track to be ready for college. The results of each test lists the College Readiness Benchmark scores alongside the student’s test scores. Scores above the benchmark indicate a student will likely be ready for college level work upon graduation. These three tests also help us as educators, to monitor our students’ growth through middle and high school.

At Ryle we are beginning to meet with our sophomore students and their parents in order to review their PLAN test results. We will discuss what their scores mean in terms of college readiness in each content area and what predicted ACT score is indicated by their PLAN scores. It is our hope, that by working together, we can stimulate our students’ thinking and planning for their future and give them feedback on their performance towards being ready for life after high school, whether it be going to college, the military, or the workforce.

All sophomore students at Ryle and their parents are invited to attend a special workshop where they will receive and review their results of the PLAN test on Thursday, Dec. 1, at 6:30 p.m. in the Ryle auditorium.