Rigor & Readiness Initiative Responds to National Crisis in Education

“All, regardless of race or class or economic status, are entitled to a fair chance and to the tools for developing their individual powers of mind and spirit to the utmost. This promise means that all children by virtue of their own efforts, competently guided, can hope to attain the mature and informed judgment needed to secure gainful employment, and to manage their own lives, thereby serving not only their own interests but also the progress of society itself.”

More than 25 years after these words introduced the National Commission on Excellence in Education’s 1983 clarion call, A Nation at Risk, the United States continues to struggle to make this goal a reality. More than 7,000 students drop out of high school each day. Of those who stay, only 25 percent are prepared to enter college or the workforce without remediation in English, math, social studies, and science. Today, the consequences of this struggle are higher than ever: a changing global marketplace and surging educational attainment worldwide threaten the United States’ preeminence as an educational leader.

Partnering for a Data-Driven Solution

In response to this national crisis, ACT has launched Rigor & Readiness, a multiyear pilot initiative to begin preparing students for college and career readiness as early as sixth grade.

“ACT and its partner, America’s Choice, share a singular mission of improving student achievement and ensuring that all students graduate from high school ready for college and career preparation without the need for remediation,” said Cynthia B. Schmeiser, president and chief operating officer, ACT Education Division.

Rigor & Readiness, a fully aligned and coherent college and career readiness instructional system, provides school districts with a research-driven approach to college and career readiness designed to prepare students in three dimensions:

• Academic Readiness: Rigor & Readiness is aligned to ACT’s College Readiness Benchmarks and the ACT College and Career Readiness System, which includes EXPLORE^® for seventh through ninth grades, PLAN^® for tenth grade, and the ACT^® test for eleventh grade. ACT’s QualityCore^® provides the curricular framework for Rigor & Readiness by providing educators with a standards-driven curriculum, instructional resources, and ongoing professional development. America’s Choice offers instructional supports to establish and sustain the system, including tiered intervention programs for students who have fallen behind, coaching, professional development, and site-specific technical assistance for school leaders, teachers, and guidance staff.
• Academic Behavior: Going hand in hand with the academic components is a tiered set of interventions and supports focused on student motivation, social engagement, and self-regulation. Components include the Student Readiness Inventory–Middle School, the Student Readiness Inventory–High School, and the Behavioral Monitoring Scales, which measure students’ attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors associated with educational and work success. In partnership with America’s Choice intervention specialists, educators are trained to use the results to diagnose academic difficulties, identify appropriate interventions, and document development and growth.
• Academic and Career Planning: Actively planning for careers and the workplace fosters a sense of purpose and exploration that can be essential to students’ ongoing success. Rigor & Readiness combines age-appropriate curricular units, beginning with the sixth grade, with the ACT Interest Inventory—which is part of EXPLORE, PLAN, and the ACT—to provide students, parents, and teachers with detailed information on career interests, a foundation for informed career planning.

Expanding Potential

In its first year of implementation, Rigor & Readiness has been rolled out to four districts: Oklahoma City Public Schools, Tulsa (Oklahoma) Public Schools, Pueblo (Colorado) City Schools, and DeKalb County School System (Georgia). Initially, the pilot focuses on grades six through nine, extending to the students’ senior year by 2013.

Districts are encouraged to contact ACT to explore becoming part of the program. Although access is necessarily limited during its pilot phase, leaders of the two organizations are excited by the possibilities Rigor & Readiness holds to help the United States achieve the goals outlined in A Nation at Risk.

“The Rigor & Readiness Initiative serves as a road map for superintendents implementing a district-wide strategy for all secondary-level students,” said Jon Erickson, senior vice president of educational services, ACT Education Division. “ACT and America’s Choice are committed to helping school districts produce levels of achievement as high as those of students in the top performing countries on which this initiative is modeled.”

To learn more about Rigor & Readiness, visit www.rigorandreadiness.org, or contact Steve Kappler, ACT assistant vice president, outreach, consulting, & marketing services, at 319-341-2612.