As the week of April 14 slowly approached, students at EHS began setting aside their usual homework for test prep worksheets and online study materials.
The junior class would be taking the ACT, with the freshmen and sophomores taking the pre tests at the same time.
District 7 has held a mandatory standardized test every year, switching between the SAT and ACT depending on cost and state mandates. Last year marked the switch back to the ACT after having used its counterpart for several years.
With many juniors having already taken the test at least once outside of school, there were a variety of expectations going into the exam.
“I thought it was going to be easier than ones I’ve previously taken,” junior Cadence Beevers said. “Everyone says the school ACT is easier than the ones outside school, but I also knew that because we have to take them on computers that it would be a little challenging because I typically do better on paper.”
Having to take the test online is just one of the reasons many students weren’t looking forward to arriving at school that morning, with many noting issues within their classrooms.
“I felt as though it could have been managed better, considering my classroom had a couple delays,” junior Madi Madison said.
Though many classrooms across the building faced minor difficulties, they were small in comparison to the previous year, in which each student’s sign-in slip had to be reprinted due to a system update the teachers were unaware of until just before the test was scheduled to begin.
According to junior Cheyane Ward, the writing portion of the test was “pretty difficult” compared to the rest of the exam. Though optional elsewhere, the in-school setup doesn’t allow students to opt in or out: everyone has to take it.
Despite these issues, however, many students believe that the test should continue to remain mandatory for all students instead of becoming optional for those who have already received scores elsewhere.
“I have friends who are going into trades and I don’t know if it would be beneficial to them,” Beevers said. “But it would be good to have just in case.”
Madison also noted that not all students are able to afford the test outside of school, so it ensures that everyone has equal access to something that so many colleges ask for.
Students will find out their results within the next few weeks, when they will make the decision whether to take the test again or if they’re satisfied with their score.
“I already signed up for the July test,” Beevers said. “I think there were some things I could have done better if my timing wasn’t as off as it was, but with the score I’m sitting at right now from previous tests I really can’t complain.”