Wednesday, October 27, 1999
Boone sophomores get to test knowledge
Program to pay for pre-ACT
BY ANDREA TORTORA
The Cincinnati Enquirer
FLORENCE — Sophomores at three Boone County high schools will find out how well prepared they are for college this fall, thanks to a new testing program.
The Education Foundation of Boone County Schools will foot the $6,500 bill for 915 students to take the PLAN test, a precursor to the ACT, in November.
Normally, students have the option to take the test, which costs just over $7. In the past about one-third of students at Boone County, Conner and Ryle high schools took the test, which measures aptitude in English, math, reading and science.
This year, Superintendent Bryan Blavatt wants all 10th-graders to take the preliminary national college entrance exam in preparation for taking the actual ACT or SAT, and to help the district pinpoint weak spots in educational progress.
“If we are going to be competitive, we need to use every tool available to increase student performance,” Mr. Blavatt said.
“This test will show us where students are weak and strong and how we can continue to improve on tests.”
The move is exactly what the Kentucky Education Department wants to see.
Spokeswoman Lisa Gross said the department encourages schools to do continuous assessment as a way to gauge student improvement.
As the standards movement — a push for students to meet certain educational goals — continues to grow, more students might find themselves taking these exams.
“We found that continuous assessment is very effective,” Ms. Gross said. “It allows teachers to target program areas for students and help them, and it allows them to do it quickly and not have to wait for a few semesters for the next test to come around.”
Some students in nearly every Kentucky and Ohio school district take either the PLAN or the precursor to the SAT. Ms. Gross said she was not aware of any Kentucky district that paid for an entire grade level to take the exam.
The PLAN test offers a review of a student's performance toward educational and career goals, and it can be used to estimate how well students will perform on the actual ACT.
School staff can use PLAN results for program evaluation, accreditation, guidance and educational and career planning.
Students usually take the ACT and SAT as juniors and seniors.
Marjorie Bowers, Boone's assistant superintendent for instructional services, said test results will determine if students are retaining what they learn over the long term.
And as the state raises standards for students, the test will help Boone County meet those goals. The hard part is finding the gaps, Ms. Bowers said.
“Because our district does really well on the (state tests) we have to really push to refine what we are doing even more,” she said. “When kids are doing well you have to really dig deep to find the barriers that students face in learning.”
Administering the PLAN test to all students will also give every child the opportunity to see how well they can do.
Conner will give the test Nov. 3 and Ryle students will take the test Nov. 9.
Boone County High has not chosen a test date.
Schools will receive results four to six weeks after taking the test.
When the test was just an option, only gifted students, or those determined to attend college, sat for the exam.
Foundation board member Deborah Jo Shafstall said every student deserves the experience of taking the test and seeing their results.
“For those students who may not be thinking about college,” she said, “it might give them a chance to see that yes, they can score well enough on this test to encourage them to continue their schooling after high school.”
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