Most students who want to go to college often take the ACT, yet all juniors in Nebraska are required to take this test. The Nebraska Department of Education requires all juniors to take the ACT as part of an assessment in order to evaluate and gather data that provides insight to students’ education.
Michael Schleicher, the Assessment Coordinator of Fremont High School, explained how the ACT preparation programs have changed over the years.
“There were a few years where we had Fremont High teachers teach and students could sign up for the class, come in at night and work on the English and the math,” Schleicher said. “But then when we found out that the state was going to adopt the ACT for statewide tests for the juniors. We knew that was going to have to be something done on a very large scale as opposed to just the students that maybe sign up for it on Saturday morning.”
The district wanted to help students as much as possible, so they hired John Baylor to teach students how to be better test takers. Baylor has a proven track record of being able to help students raise their ACT scores and is hired by more than 700 high schools, according to ontocollege.com.
Along with the John Baylor lessons, some teachers help students prepare for the ACT their own way. Justin Bigsby, a teacher in the FHS English department, gives his junior students timed practice tests with grammar and reading comprehension.
“I provide them with as much information and assistance as possible, whether that be through additional resources I have or online practice tests,” Bigsby said. “Also, most students don’t realize how much our regular reading curriculum helps prepare them for the Reading portion of the ACT.”
All juniors at FHS took the ACT on March 8th. Ashley Magana, one of those juniors, recently took the ACT along with the rest of the 2025 class. Like all students who are about to take the major test, Magana thought that she was going to get a lower score than what she actually got.
Magana also said that she “definitely tried harder” on the ACT than the PreACT and stated that she only paid attention to the Daily TST John Baylor lessons sometimes.
Some juniors will decide to take the ACT again in hopes of raising their scores to get scholarships for college.
“I didn’t like my score, “ Alexa Lute, a junior at Fremont High School said. She also stated that she wants to retake the ACT so she can “be more eligible for scholarships.”
Students who are interested in taking the ACT should keep an eye out for the upcoming days for the next test days. September 14, 2024, October 26, 2024, December 14, 2024 and February 8, 2025.
