School's Lunch and Learn Program Intends to Improve Test Scores

 

February 13, 2019

For three weeks now, several students at Chinook High School have been trading the leisure of a lunch hour for ACT test preparation. After noticing a trend in declining test scores and unsuccessful retake attempts to raise a low score, Chinook's Improvement Plan for Schools (ChIPS) Team decided an intervention was in order. From their brainstorming with the administration, ACT-uesdays Lunch and Learn was born.

"Although the core subject teachers (math, English, and science) are all performing good work in their classrooms, we wanted a more comprehensive approach to improving ACT scores," ChIPS Team President, Laura Kellam said. "I'm not sure where the lunch idea originated, but the schedule worked out well because when we set the plan in motion, we had ten weeks left before the juniors would take the exam on April 2."

ACT-uesdays Lunch and Learn intends to empower students with opportunities to learn and apply strategies for test-taking success. During the lunch hour sessions, students are reviewing key subject area concepts that are often found on the ACT, deconstructing sample questions, and practicing with questions from former ACT exams. Students are also receiving test-taking tips and learning strategies for relieving test anxiety.


According to school officials, approximately 30-40 students attend every Lunch and Learn session: sophomores who plan to take the PreACT, juniors who will take the ACT plus Writing this April, and seniors who expect to retake the test to improve their scores. These students voluntarily met with their English teachers-Julie Terry and Laura Kellam-on January 22, their math teachers-Dalton Heilig and Drew Linquist-on January 29, and their science teachers-Jeri Wood and Kendall Harwood-on February 5.


"Our original hope was to entice ten to fifteen students into joining us," Kellam said. "To our delight, we are averaging many more. Almost all sophomores and juniors are attending! We want to roll out the red carpet for these students who are voluntarily giving up an entire lunch period every week to LEARN. Great food is one of the ways we are attracting them. Carol Elliot has been graciously providing a dessert every week, which has been wonderful as well," Kellam added.

The core subject rotation will continue for six more weeks, culminating with a celebration during which students who have attended nine out of the ten meetings will be eligible for drawings of gas cards or some other attractive reward. Program organizers also hope to arrange a special meal and an ice cream sundae bar on that last Tuesday.


"Although the give-aways and an alternative to school lunch may incentivize students, that's not what's motivating them. They actually want that edge. We're trying to instill a broader sense of achievement, and they realize that they have to go to work," Superintendent Darin Hannum said about the test prep program. "Our teaching staff is donating their time in the interest of our students," he added.

ACT is an acronym for American College Test. The ACT is a standardized entrance exam used by most colleges and universities to make admissions decisions and to determine a high school graduate's preparation for college-level work. An ACT score provides post-secondary schools with one common data point that can be used to compare all applicants. In measuring this readiness, the ACT covers four areas: English, mathematics, reading, and science reasoning, with an optional writing component.

Because many colleges require scores from the ACT as part of the admissions process, an ACT score is a key component in the college application process. College admissions officers will review standardized test scores alongside other data, including high school GPA, the range and depth of classes

taken in high school, letters of recommendation from teachers or mentors, extracurricular activities, admissions interviews, and personal essays. How important ACT scores are in the college application process varies from school to school. But overall, higher scores on the ACT and/or SAT provide more options for attending and paying for college-whether in choices for where to attend or with scholarship offers.

The ACT typically requires test-takers to complete 215 questions in 2 hours and 55 minutes. Because the test is not just a measurement of content knowledge but an assessment of one's ability to think quickly and accurately under the pressure of a clock, students will require plenty of practice so that they can develop the steady pacing they will need to succeed on the test. Just as athletes require practice to elevate their level of performance, students competing in the academic realm need practice to build mental muscle. ACT-uesdays Lunch and Learn hopes to provide that necessary practice.

The Office of Public Instruction (OPI), which dictates state assessment dates and exams, requires all juniors in Montana to take the ACT with Writing test. The preACT is optional for grade ten students. OPI also provides schools with testing support tools.

Tests for school-wide assessment are typically ordered between February 25 and March 8. The testing window during which schools are required to administer the exams is April 2 through April 19, and it is recommended that examinees take all four subject tests on the same day. Although there are online/electronic options for taking the test, at Chinook, the test will be administered using the paper testing option.

 
 

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