Accuplacer Readiness Standards
Description of the Skills and knowledge Associated with Accuplacer Scores
Test scores and
CCCS course
OVERALL
Impressions
Topic in Terms
of Main Idea
and Content
Organization,
Form and
Coherence
Topic
Development
Sentence
Structure and
Formation
Punctuation
Grammar
Vocabulary and
Word Choice in
terms of Style
Score Range
25 – 50
(ACT 15)
English 030
Writing may sound
like a conversation
or monologue; first
sentence may refer
to the topic in a
general way; ideas
are often repeated
in different ways.
Writing moves from
one idea to another
following a kind of
personal logic
instead of an
organized plan; this
is more like free
writing than an
essay.
Body paragraphs
are short and
repeat the same
ideas over and over
without
development or
explanation
Writing exhibits
very short
sentences or longer
ones that do not
connect ideas
clearly. Writing
shows little
understanding of
where one idea
ends and another
one begins.
Almost every
sentence has an
error, usually in
word order, words
left out, incomplete
sentences,
unrelated ideas,
run-on sentences.
Writer is not proof
reading to locate
and correct errors.
Vocabulary is
limited to every day
spoken language
and general terms;
words are often
misused, confusing
and/or misspelled
Writer has little
experience with
organizing ideas
into paragraphs and
expressing ideas in
complete,
connected sentence
structures
Test scores and
CCCS course
OVERALL
Impressions
Topic in Terms
of Main Idea
and Content
Organization,
Form and
Coherence
Topic
Development
Sentence
Structure and
Formation
Punctuation
Grammar
Vocabulary and
Word Choice in
terms of Style
Score Range
50 – 69
(ACT 16)
English 060
Writes about
assigned topic but
main idea may not
be clear and
supporting points
are loosely related
to topic.
Writing is not
usually guided by a
conscious plan and
often seems choppy
to the reader; often
no closing sentence
is present
Body paragraphs
may have too many
ideas statements
and little
development or
may be very short,
even on sentence
Writer usually
writes in complete
sentences, but ideas
are not always
connected logically
and smoothly.
Most sentences
may be simple;
writer does not use
sentence types
consciously
Writing exhibits
some error in
punctuation,
subject-verb
agreement;
incomplete
sentences; pronoun
references and
confusing words.
Vocabulary is a
combination of
every day spoken
language, some
general terms, and
some language that
is more precise.
Writer does not
take risks with
language; works are
sometimes misused,
confusing or
misspelled
Writer has limited
experience
composing short
essays. Some are
developed with
examples and
explanation, but
writing may be
choppy. Writer
usually writes in
complete
sentences, but does
not show conscious
use of various
patterns.
Test scores and
CCCS course
OVERALL
Impressions
Topic in Terms
of Main Idea
and Content
Organization,
Form and
Coherence
Topic
Development
Sentence
Structure and
Formation
Punctuation
Grammar
Vocabulary and
Word Choice in
terms of Style
Score Range
70 – 95
(ACT 17)
English 090
Main idea is stated
clearly but may be
too general to sum
up the supporting
points of the essay;
supporting points
are related to topic.
Overall organization
is logical, but ideas
are often not
connected within
and between
paragraphs; a
concluding sentence
is usually present
but may simply
repeat the main
idea without further
comment
Body paragraphs
typically fall into 2
categories: those
with clearly stated
main ideas (topic
sentences) but not
smooth transitions
or those with more
general topic
sentences include
interesting
examples.
A variety of
sentence types are
present and are
complete 70% of
the time, ideas are
logically though
sometimes with
overt transitions
For the most part,
commas and end
marks are used
correctly. Writing
may show
experimentation
with semicolon,
dash, colon,
parentheses,
quotation marks
and ellipsis. Some
verb tense shifts
and pronoun
agreement
references are
confusing.
Two scenarios are
most common: one
writer may need to
take more risks with
language to develop
a variety of styles
for difference
purposes and
audiences; another
writer who is
experimenting with
language and style
needs to work on
conveying precise
meaning
Writer has some
experience with
essay writing,
paragraph
development,
organization, and
sentence patterns.
Writer is beginning
to experiment with
writing for
difference purposes
and audiences.
Test scores and
CCCS course
OVERALL
Impressions
Topic in Terms
of Main Idea
and Content
Organization,
Form and
Coherence
Topic
Development
Sentence
Structure and
Formation
Punctuation
Grammar
Vocabulary and
Word Choice in
terms of Style
Score Range
95 and up
(ACT 18)
English 121
Delete a clause or
sentence because it
is obviously
irrelevant to the
essay
Identify the basic
purpose or role a
specified phrase or
sentence
Select the most
logical place to add
a sentence in a
paragraph
Develop ideas by
using some specific
reasons, details and
examples
Show movement
between general
and specific ideas
and examples
Determine the need
for punctuation and
conjugations to
avoid awkwardsounding sentence
fragments and
fused sentences
Decide the
appropriate verb
tense and voice by
considering the
entire sentence
Provide appropriate
punctuation in
straightforward
situations
Delete commas that
disturb the
sentence flow
Delete obviously
synonymous and
wordy material in a
sentence
Revise expression
that deviate from
the style of an essay
Maintain a focus on
the general topic in
the prompt
throughout the
essay and focus on
the specific issue in
the prompt
The 030, 060, & 090 rubrics were adapted from the Community College of Denver, the Center for Educational Advancement.
The English 121 rubric was adapted from the ACT College Readiness Standards