MONTGOMERY, Ala. — A unanimous vote from the State Board of Education has officially ended Alabama’s administration of the ACT Aspire test to third through eighth-grade students. The board decided not to renew the state’s contract with the company after several years of disappointing results.
According to a report from the Alabama News Network, Superintendent Michael Sentance said there have been several issues with administration of the ACT Aspire, including delays and unhelpful data. ACT promised officials that the results from the 2017 test would be in by the end of May, but they were not received until June 12. This led members of the board to believe that Alabama was not a priority for ACT.
Sentance said that the state will be transitioning to Scantron tests — previously known as GlobalScholar — next year until a more permanent solution is found. According to Al.com 65 percent of Alabama schools currently use such tests.
Alabama began administering the ACT Aspire to elementary and middle school students in 2014 as an annual reading and math assessment. Scores have been disappointing, but state officials said they represent a more accurate depiction of student learning levels.
Despite the discontinuation of the Aspire contract, eleventh-grade students will still take the standard ACT and twelfth-grade students will continue to take ACT WorkKeys.
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