College Readiness and You
Sherry Wynn Perdue, Director
Oakland University Writing Center
212 Kresge Library
wynn@oakland.edu
Traits of a Successful College Student
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Accepts personal responsibility
Discovers Self-motivation
Masters Self-Management
Employs Interdependence
Gains Self-awareness
Adopts Lifelong learning as your task
Develops emotional intelligence
Hones self-belief
~Skip Downing, On Course
ACT
• What should I do to prepare?
Preparation Resources
 Register at ACTStudent.org, where you can learn more about the test
and complete the question of the day.
 Practice using The Real ACT Prep Guide, which you can order online or
purchase at Barnes and Noble.
 Enroll in a preparation course, one that is substantial and taught by
experts in subject matter and in standardized testing. Avoid oneafternoon programs or those where all material is taught by one person.
 If you cannot afford a prep course, Barrons offers a good ACT
preparation book. Buy if only if you plan to use it.
Read, Read, and Read Some more!
 Read diverse types of texts in science, history, literature, and the arts. Do so
daily!
 Understand that the test consists of four different types of texts that are
excerpted. Passages don’t start at the beginning and end at the end. As such,
you have to develop inferential skills. In other words, authors imply things that
you have to learn to decode. Two-thirds of questions focus on your ability to
infer rather than to retrieve directly stated information.
 Before trying to read and work faster, you must improve your reading
comprehension. You can do this by asking the following questions as you read
and annotate:
 Why did the author write this?
 How did s/he frame the information to help me understand it?
 What role does the author’s tone, conveyed by “attitude” words, play in the
meaning?
Practice Smart
 Practice regularly, one passage at a time, rather than in large blocks of
time. Practice in the same conditions under which you will take the test.
 Conduct error analysis. While you don’t always understand why you got
a question right, you can learn a great deal from those that you miss.
 Once you know your weaknesses, you can practice strategically,
focusing on difficult content and question types.
 Become a smart test-taker. Always employ the process of elimination
AND rephrase the questions to ensure you understand them.
ACT Scores
• What do they mean?
Composite ACT Score
Nation
Michigan
 21.1*, which represents
 20.1, which represents
49% of the nation’s
students.
*On a 1-36 scale.
100%* of Michigan’s
students.
* The ACT is required as part of Michigan’s
high school proficiency test. In many other
states, a much smaller percentage is tested,
which does affect comparisons.
ACT Benchmarks to Look For
College
Course
Subject Area
Test
Explore
Benchmark
Plan
Benchmark
ACT (36)
Benchmark
English
Composition
English
13
15
18 (MI=19.3)
Social Sciences Reading
15
17
21 (MI=20)
College
Algebra
Mathematics
17
19
22 (MI=20.1)
Biology
Science
20
21
24 (MI=20.4)
*Benchmark Translation: 75% probability of earning a C or higher in a
corresponding college course, or 50% chance of earning a B or higher.
COLLEGE READINESS
Michigan
(% College Ready)
National Average
(% College Ready)
English= 59%
vs. 67%
Algebra= 36%
vs. 46%
Social Science Reading=45%
vs. 52%
Biology= 26%
vs. 31%
21% of MI students meet all
benchmarks for college readiness,
whereas the national average is
25%
Promising Trends to Reinforce
 Over the last five (5) years, Michigan’s the percentage of students who met all
four benchmarks increased from 17% (22% nationally) to 21% (25% nationally).
Each year saw an increase.
 Michigan students who take the common core (4 years of English and 3
years of Math, Science, and Social Studies, all vertically aligned for
the skills students need for college) or more performed significantly
better in all subjects. Of those, the following percentages reached benchmarks
or higher in 2011:
 English: 62% versus 35%
 Reading: 46% versus 21%
 Math: 37% versus 6%
 Science: 28% versus 15%
 Students who read regularly and whose curriculum stresses implied
knowledge rather than just explicit knowledge perform better.
Advanced Placement
•
What is it?
•
How does it compare to other
programs?
Advanced Placement versus Dual Enrollment
 AP courses provide a challenging but supported curriculum specifically
designed for high school students.
 You do not need to be an all A student to enroll in AP courses, but you must be
prepared to work hard. Students who take AP courses, even courses for which
they do not earn As and Bs or gain college credit, are more likely to earn a
passing grade in the corresponding college class.
 AP generally provides a stronger foundation upon which a high school student
can build. As such, dual enrollment generally should be reserved for those
situations where your performance is exemplary and where AP or IB options do
not exist. Comparison studies demonstrate that students who attend AB/IB
courses leave with a better understanding of the material than those who
complete dual enrollment courses.
The Admission’s Essay
 Answer the question(s) posed.
 Show reciprocity: What do you expect from the institution and what
will you bring to it?
 Leverage your strengths and examine how you have compensated
for/addressed your weaknesses (emergent skills).
 Consult with an experienced reader before submitting the essay. This
person can help with tone, audience awareness, etc.
Sources
HTTP://WWW.ACT.ORG/NEWSROOM/DATA/2011/S
TATES/PDF/MICHIGAN.PDF FOR MICHIGAN
HTTP://WWW.ACT.ORG/NEWSROOM/DATA/2012/P
DF/PROFILE/MICHIGAN.PDF
HTTP://WWW.ACT.ORG/RESEARCH/POLICYMAKER
S/CCCR11/PDF/CONDITIONOFCOLLEGEANDCAREE
RREADINESS2011.PDF FOR THE NATION