TorchPrep Blog

So, you have a college night coming up and you have to talk to parents about the ACT. The pressure is on because this is an important topic and they are looking to you for answers. In this post, you will get four talking points to share with parents, to educate them and put them on a path to success.

TLDR: Take a practice ACT test EARLY in Junior year Imbed ACT content in your classroom teaching Offer students some sort of skill or strategy focused training Video Transcript: You're in school leadership, and you want to go from seeing the ACT as a challenge and liability to having a plan that sets your students up for success. In this video, I'm going to show you three things that many schools do to be successful on the ACT. I don't care if you are an urban school, rural, suburban, public, or private. If you do these things you will see more students hitting benchmarks, getting into college, and getting scholarships with their ACT test scores.

TLDR: Hitting benchmark on the ACT is possible by changing the way you view the test! You have to view the test by the number of questions you need correct to hit benchmark. (ex. English you only need to get 37 questions right out of 75). Video Transcript: If you're in administration or you're a classroom teacher, a big problem happening is that what do you do with students whenever they're not hitting benchmark on their ACT? Well, what I want to share with you today, we've got a tool we use in the classroom here at TorchPrep to help students hit benchmark on the ACT. So I'll share it with you real quick. It's a practical tool that you can use in the classroom with your students so they can get closer to hitting benchmark on this test. And what we call this, it's simply Redefining the Win.

TLDR: Scoring changed from 2400 to 1600 score range No penalty for guessing Video Transcript: The SAT has made some significant changes over the last few years. And so in this video, I just want to talk very clearly and simply about what those changes have been and what it means for you.

TLDR: Reading - At least one reading passage is now split into two passages Science: Much more unpredictable than past Science test Slightly more focus on Science knowledge Scoring - Score Report now includes reporting categories and STEM score Video Transcript: So you're probably aware, there have been more ACT changes in the last five years than probably any five year period in the last 20. What I want to do in this video is just unlock a few of those changes and show you which ones matter most, and what you need to know about them.

TLDR: Don't ask yourself "What is a good ACT Score?" Instead, set a Goal Score using the steps below Find your baseline ACT Score = take a practice ACT or national test to just find out where you are on the ACT Find out where your score stacks up against incoming freshman at your desired college Look at your opportunities for merit based scholarships based on goal score Ask "What is a GOOD ACT score for YOU?" Video Transcript: So a question that we get constantly at TorchPrep is what's a good ACT score? But a better question that you should be asking is, what's a good ACT score for you? Or even better, what do you need your ACT score to do for you? Do you need your ACT score to help you get outta high school? To get into college? Or win a scholarship? That's the better question. At TorchPrep, we help lots of students do this, and we have a very simple approach that I'm gonna walk you through.

TLDR: Reduce the Stress - Parents and Students both are feeling the pressure of the ACT. Tell them the NEW ACT Story - Parents took the ACT 20 years ago when you simply took the test once. They are not aware that the ACT has changed and requires more attention now when it comes to college applications. Help them Understand their Score - Show them the College and Career Readiness Benchmarks, Local college's average ACT scores, scholarship scores, etc. Give them a Plan - Don't give them 10+ options to prepare for the ACT, give them something specific that your school will do to help. Video Transcript: So, you have a college night coming up and you have to talk to parents about the ACT. The pressure is on because this is an important topic and they are looking to you for answers. In this video, I'm going to give you four talking points to share with parents, to educate them and put them on a path to success. Also, make sure you check out the description below. I'm going to put some practical resources and some links that you can share with them, they're going to be a huge help for you.