Table Of ContentThe Condition of College and Career Readiness l 2011
Virginia
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in the broad areas of education and workforce development. Each
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programs and services have one guiding purpose—helping people
achieve education and workplace success.
A copy of this report can be found at
www.act.org/readiness/2011
© 2011 by ACT, Inc. All rights reserved. The ACT® is a registered trademark of ACT, Inc., in the U.S.A. and other countries. ACT
National Curriculum Survey®, EXPLORE®, and PLAN® are registered trademarks of ACT, Inc. College Readiness Standards™ and
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Virginia
The Condition of College and Career Readiness | Class of 2011
Annually, ACT provides a snapshot of the college and invaluable resource as ACT works closely with states and
career readiness of ACT-tested high school graduates. We school districts to transform the nation’s P–16 education
offer this report as a service to inform policymakers and system.
practitioners about selected indicators of effectiveness
College and Career Readiness Defined
and how that translates into readiness. It is designed to
ACT has long defined college and career readiness as the
stimulate discussion, inquiry, and action. In interpreting
acquisition of the knowledge and skills a student needs to
and using the results, keep in mind that the number and
enroll and succeed in credit-bearing first-year courses at a
percentage of 2011 graduates who took the ACT in your
postsecondary institution (such as a two- or four-year
state determine how representative these findings are.
college, trade school, or technical school) without the
Our Unique Added Value
need for remediation. ACT’s definition of college and
ACT has been measuring the academic achievement of career readiness was adopted by the Common Core
11th- and 12th-grade students since 1959, their career State Standards Initiative, which serves as validation of
aspirations since 1969, and their academic preparation in our extensive research and ACT’s College and Career
high school since 1985. ACT’s data system includes each Readiness Standards.™
of these areas for 8th and 10th graders and has been
Using This Report1
monitoring student readiness and success for nearly two
This report is designed to help inform the following
decades. Since 1996, and every three to five years
questions that are driving national efforts to strengthen
thereafter, ACT surveys thousands of high school and
P–16 education.
college educators to pinpoint the knowledge and skills
• Are your students prepared for college and career?
needed for first-year college coursework. ACT is the only
• Are enough of your students taking core courses?
organization with decades of empirical data showing
• Are your core courses rigorous enough?
exactly what happens to high school graduates once they
• Are your younger students on target for college
get to college or to work and how they can maximize
and career?
success—based on their preparation from kindergarten
• What other dimensions of college and career readiness
through high school. These unique data sets are an
should we track?
ACT’s College Readiness Benchmarks
Benchmarks are scores on the ACT subject area tests Composition, College Algebra, Biology, and an
that represent the level of achievement required for introductory social science course. Based on a
students to have a 50% chance of obtaining a B or nationally representative sample, the Benchmarks are
higher or about a 75% chance of obtaining a C or median course placement values for these institutions
higher in corresponding credit-bearing first-year college and as such represent a typical set of expectations.
courses. These college courses include English The ACT College Readiness Benchmarks are:
EXPLORE® PLAN® ACT®
College Course Subject Area Test Benchmark Benchmark Benchmark
English Composition English 13 15 18
Social Sciences Reading 15 17 21
College Algebra Mathematics 17 19 22
Biology Science 20 21 24
3
College and Career Readiness in
Virginia
Attainment Percent of 2011 ACT-Tested High School Graduates Meeting
College Readiness Benchmarks by Subject
of College
and Career 100!
Readiness
80! 76!
• 20,526 of your graduates, 66!
61!
which is an estimated 24% nt! 60! 52! 55!
of your graduating class, e
c 45!
r
took the ACT.* Pe
40! 36!
• From 2007–2011, the 30! 32!
25!
number of ACT test-taking
graduates has increased by 20!
40.1%, while the number of
graduates in your state has
0!
increased by 2.1%. English! Reading! Mathematics! Science! All Four!
Subjects!
Virginia! Nation!
Percent of 2007–2011 ACT-Tested High School Graduates
Meeting ACT College Readiness Benchmarks
100!
80! 74! 74! 76! 76!
72!
61! 61!
58! 59!
60! 54!
nt!
e
c 55!
r 53!
Pe 40! 45! 50! 49! 37! 36!
32! 33!
* Totals for graduating seniors were 29!
obtained from Knocking at the 31! 32!
College Door: Projections of 20! 26! 27!
High School Graduates by State 23!
and Race/Ethnicity, 1992 to 2022,
7th edition. © March 2008 by
the Western Interstate Commission 0!
for Higher Education. 2007! 2008! 2009! 2010! 2011!
English! Reading! Mathematics! Science! All Four Subjects!
Note: Percents in this report may not
sum to 100% due to rounding.
4
College and Career Readiness in
Virginia
Percent of 2011 ACT-Tested High School Graduates by Near
Benchmark Attainment and Subject
Attainment
100! of College
16!
28! and Career
36!
80! 8!
48! Readiness
11!
60! 9!
nt!
e
c
r
e
P 16!
40!
76!
61!
55!
20!
36!
0!
English! Reading! Mathematics! Science!
Met Benchmark! Within 2 Points of Benchmark! Below Benchmark by 3+ Points!
Percent of 2011 ACT-Tested High School Graduates by
Number of ACT College Readiness Benchmarks Attained
Met 1
Benchmark!
Met No
13%!
Benchmarks!
20%!
Met 2
Benchmarks!
18%!
Met All 4
Benchmarks!
Met 3
32%!
Benchmarks!
18%!
5
College and Career Readiness in
Virginia
Participation Percent of 2007–2011 ACT-Tested High School Graduates
by Race/Ethnicity*
and Opportunity
100!
Over the past decade, 12! 7! 3! 6! 4! 5!
18! 3!
ACT has experienced 2!
unprecedented growth in the 80! 2!
number of students tested, as
well as statewide partnerships
in ten different states and in ent! 60! 53! 57! 60! 61! 60!
c
many districts across the r
e
P
country. As a result, the 2011 40!
Condition of College and
Career Readiness report 3! 4! 4! 4! 6!
4! 5! 5! 6! 6!
20!
provides a much deeper and
more representative sample in 20! 20! 20! 20! 20!
comparison to a purely 0!
self-selected college-going 2007! 2008! 2009! 2010! 2011!
population. African! American! Asian! Hispanic! Pacific ! White! Two or! No Response!
American! Indian! Islander! More Races!
Note: Less than 0.5% will not appear.
Percent of 2007–2011 ACT-Tested High School Graduates
Meeting Three or More Benchmarks by Race/Ethnicity*
100!
80!
67!
64!
58! 58!
61!
cent! 60! 53! 53! 55! 58! 6407!!
er 49! 42! 42! 43!
P
40!
32! 43! 41!
39! 38!
30!
20! 14! 15!
12! 12! 12!
0!
* Race/ethnicity categories have
2007! 2008! 2009! 2010! 2011!
been changed to reflect updated
US Department of Education African ! American! Asian! Hispanic! Pacific! White!
reporting requirements.2 American! Indian! Islander!
6
College and Career Readiness in
Virginia
Participation and Opportunity by Subject
Percent of 2011 ACT-Tested High School Graduates Meeting College
Readiness Benchmarks by Race/Ethnicity and Subject*
English Mathematics
African! African!
42! 19!
American! American!
American! American!
77! 47!
Indian! Indian!
Asian! 84! Asian! 82!
Hispanic! 70! Hispanic! 48!
Pacific! Pacific!
77! 65!
Islander! Islander!
White! 86! White! 64!
All! All!
76! 55!
Students! Students!
Reading Science
African! African!
28! 9!
American! American!
American! American!
60! 34!
Indian! Indian!
Asian! 69! Asian! 50!
Hispanic! 54! Hispanic! 27!
Pacific! Pacific!
65! 52!
Islander! Islander!
White! 72! White! 45!
All! All!
61! 36!
Students! Students!
7
College and Career Readiness in
Virginia
Course-Taking Percent of 2011 ACT-Tested High School Graduates in
Core or More vs. Less Than Core Courses Meeting College
Patterns and
Readiness Benchmarks by Subject
Benchmark
100!
Performance
Within subjects, ACT has 80! 76!
consistently found that
students who take the 62!
60! 56! 56! 57!
recommended core nt!
e
curriculum are more likely to c
r
e
be ready for college or career P 38!
40!
than those who do not. A core
curriculum is defined as four
years of English and three 20!
10!
years each of mathematics,
6!
social studies, and science.3
0!
English! Reading! Mathematics! Science!
Core or More! Less Than Core!
8
College and Career Readiness in
Virginia
Early Preparation
ACT research shows that younger students who take a “the level of academic achievement that students attain by
rigorous curricula are more prepared to graduate from 8th grade has a larger impact on their college and career
high school ready for college or career. Moreover, our readiness by the time they graduate high school than
recent research (The Forgotten Middle, 2008) found that anything that happens academically in high school.”
Percent of 2010–2011 PLAN-Tested 10th Graders Meeting College Readiness Benchmarks (N=3,178)
100!
20!
80! 37! Met 1
49! Benchmark!
14!
59! Met No 18%!
Benchmarks!
60!
nt! 14! 30%!
e
c
Per 17! Met 2
40! Benchmarks!
66! 17! 19%!
49!
20! Met All 4
34!
24! Benchmarks!
Met 3
19%!
Benchmarks!
0!
English! Reading! Mathematics! Science! 14%!
Met Benchmark! Within 2 Points of Benchmark! Below Benchmark by 3+ Points!
Percent of 2010–2011 EXPLORE-Tested 8th Graders Meeting College Readiness Benchmarks (N=7,417)
100!
18!
29! 29! Met 1
80!
Benchmark!
17!
59! Met No 19%!
Benchmarks!
60! 22!
ent! 34! 29%!
c
Per Met 2
40!
Benchmarks!
65! 21! 20%!
49! Met All 4
20! 36! Benchmarks!
20! 17%! Met 3
0! Benchmarks!
English! Reading! Mathematics! Science! 15%!
Met Benchmark! Within 2 Points of Benchmark! Below Benchmark by 3+ Points!
9
College and Career Readiness in
Virginia
Other College and Career Readiness Factors
ACT has found several other Percent of 2011 ACT-Tested High School Graduates with
substantial factors that impact Career Interests in Jobs Calling for a Two-Year Degree or
college and career readiness
More in the State’s Five Fastest-Growing Career Fields4
for students. They include
25!
career and educational
planning and the academic
20! Job Openings!
behaviors of students. 20!
Career Interests!
nt! 15! 14!
e
c
r
e
P 10!
10!
8!
7! 7!
6!
5!
5!
3!
2!
0!
Computer/! Education! Management! Community! Marketing/!
Information! Services! Sales!
Specialties!
Preparation
Percent of 2011 ACT-Tested High School Graduates
for Careers in
Interested in High-Growth Careers Meeting College
High-Growth
Readiness Benchmarks by Subject
Fields
100!
Many students who are
interested in these career 80!
73!
71!
areas fall short of meeting 67! 66!
64!
ACT’s College Readiness
Benchmarks, suggesting that nt! 60! 55!55! 56! 56! 52!
e 48!
they are not on the right path Perc 40! 43! 44! 42! 40!
40!
to take advantage of career
opportunities in these high- 25! 26! 27! 23!
growth fields. 20!
0!
Computer/! Education! Management! Community! Marketing/!
Information! Services! Sales!
Specialties!
English! Reading! Mathematics! Science!
10
