Rescheduled for the Better

Samantha Como, Yearbook Co-Editor-in-Chief
October 13, 2020

The ACT was originally scheduled for juniors to take in April, but due to COVID-19 circumstances, it has been rescheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 6. Senior students that signed up to take the ACT in April still get the chance to take the test for free and take it at the school.

Having the ACT rescheduled gives some students the opportunity to be more prepared for the test. Senior Chris Viermann has been taking ACT prep classes and feels prepared for taking the test provided by the school.

Hard Work Pays Off. Studying in hopes of getting a 32 on the ACT, senior Chris Viermann has been preparing for the upcoming ACT that the school is offering since the summer. “I feel prepared to take the ACT because I’ve done a lot of ACT prep lately,” said Viermann. photo by Aniaya Reed

“[The ACT reschedule] gives us more time to study, learn new material, and practice on old ACT tests. I took an ACT prep class over the summer, and my scores went from barely above average to the top 1% in the nation. I had a 24 in English last year and after my ACT prep class, I scored a 35,” said Viermann.

Throughout the summer and the end of school last year, the ACT was not accessible to many students, so the ACT program provided the opportunity for students to take the test in October. Counselor Laurie Cantrell likes that students have an opportunity to take the test at the school and that it is free for seniors.

“Many students were not able to access an ACT exam over the summer due to test sites being closed and exams cancelled. This provides those students an opportunity to test here at school at no cost,” said Cantrell.

The ACT is rescheduled to a day that students would normally have classes, so the school has decided for senior students that they get an off day with doing classwork. Senior Emily Clark likes the opportunity to take tests with the school for free, but she does not like that she does not get to have a day off.

“I do not get to have the day off like all of the other students in the district. I also have to go through the anxiety of having to take the test again,” said Clark.

With seniors not being able to take the ACT in April, some colleges have given the option to not have students send in their ACT scores. While Viermann is giving his ACT scores to colleges, he understands the college’s decision to drop the ACT test score requirements.

“I get it. A lot of kids have not been able to take the ACT because of the lockdown, so it wouldn’t be fair to require an ACT score. If you have a good score then you should absolutely send it in! But if you have a really bad ACT score and a really high GPA, it’d probably be better to just opt out,” said Viermann.

Study Hard. Working on getting a higher ACT score for scholarships, senior Emily Clark practices different math problems that will help her achieve a higher score and prepare for the upcoming test. “When I took my first test, I bought an ACT Review book, so I have been reviewing the content from it,” said Clark. photo by Emma Gomez

On the other hand, Clark believes that colleges should not have the option to send in a student’s ACT scores at all. She believes that a student’s score should not determine whether or not a student should get a scholarship or not.

“I wish colleges would just drop the ACT all together because it is not a true representation of who a student is. It is also confusing as to what scholarships the colleges will offer if you don’t have a score. It seems that you need an ACT score to receive a large scholarship,” said Clark.

Cantrell agrees with Clark’s statement that ACT scores play a big part in colleges determining whether a student is accepted or not. Cantrell also agrees that results from a test should not determine a student’s future.

“I believe colleges should look at the student as a whole to determine whether or not they should be admitted, instead of how they perform on a test. Colleges becoming test optional seems like a step in this direction, and I am all for it,” said Cantrell.

For some students, learning the tips and tricks about the ACT is helpful in getting a higher score. Viermann has been practicing a lot for the test and believes the most helpful advice he received was to pace himself during the test.

“Pacing can make the difference between getting a 27 and a 36. Even if you get the first 40 questions right but run out of time for the last 20, it’s going to tank your score,” said Viermann.

The majority of senior students were given the opportunity of taking the ACT test that was originally scheduled in April to now be taken in October at the school for free. Despite having to take the test late, some students have found the rescheduling has given them more time to prepare for the test.