Ankeny Students Improve on ACT Test Score

College entrance exam scores are once again on the rise in the Ankeny School District.

District officials recently received a summary of ACT scores earned by 2011 graduates who took the test, and the numbers show an improvement from scores reported in 2010.

The district’s 2011 composite score on the ACT was 23.7, a 0.4-percent increase from the 2010 score. The score exceeded that of the state average of 22.3.

Susie Meade, assistant superintendent of curriculum and instruction, said the biggest thing district officials look at is the long-term trend. The score has stayed between 23.2 and 23.8 the past five years.

“Over the last five years, we have seen growth,” she said.

Students taking the ACT are tested in four areas – English, science, math and reading. The test is designed to show how prepared students are for college coursework.

Three hundred fifty Ankeny students took the test in 2011, a nine-person increase from 2010. Students scored above state average in all four areas of the test.

Eighty-six percent of Ankeny students who took the test also were considered prepared for college English composition, compared to 77 percent statewide.

As a whole, the class also scored higher than state average in preparedness for college algebra, social science and biology.

Forty percent of Ankeny students who took the test were considered prepared for all four courses.

Meade said it’s difficult to pinpoint one factor attributing to this year’s score increase.

“There are so many things play into the score,” she said. “Everything we do is important so it’s hard to isolate just one thing.”

However, both Meade and Jennifer Lindaman, director of secondary education, said there are specific things that could have contributed to the increase. Lindaman said the class of 2011 was the first to have to complete additional course requirements to graduate.

“They had to take an extra year of science and math,” she said.

Other factors include increased enrollment in Advanced Placement courses and increased professional development for teachers.

“The use of assessment (by teachers) has greatly improved,” Meade said. “Teachers are constantly making instructional adjustments, as necessary, to ensure students master the power standards.    

The district also implemented support courses such as Second Chance Reading and math labs to give kids who need it an extra dose of the math and/or reading courses that most challenge them.

Both Lindaman and Meade said the district will continue implementing ways to further increase ACT scores and overall college preparedness. One way is through this year’s addition of Explore, a test given to eighth grade students to assess their academic strengths and weaknesses.

“If we can identify the areas we need to strengthen and can do that between eighth and 11^th grades, that will be a very helpful piece in improving (the scores),” Lindaman said.

One of the keys to improving ACT scores and student college preparedness, Meade said, is continuing to find ways to implement skills students can apply to their entire lives.

“The goal is to help them learn so that they can be as successful as possible in whatever path they choose after high school,” Meade said.

Continuing to implement a rigorous curriculum is also key, Lindaman said.

“We see ourselves preparing every kid for college,” she said. “We’re passionate about student achievement, as it should be – we come here everyday excited for what we can make happen for our kids.”

Want to know exactly how Ankeny students did on the ACT the past five years? Ankeny Patch broke down the last half-decade in a numerical view.