By Sam Bell
Opinion Editor
The ACT, a standardized test required for the college admissions process, recently implemented a policy that allows students to retake individual sections of the test, providing a step in the right direction toward adjusting the ACT to be less strenuous for students taking it. Students who will take the ACT in the future years will benefit from the new policy change, excluding students who took it in previous years.
The new policy states that starting in September of 2020, students will have the opportunity to retake individual sections of the test and/or the optional writing section online on nationally scheduled dates, according to the ACT terms and conditions. The ACT scores students on a scale from 1 to 36 by creating a composite out of their average scores in the English, Reading, Math and Science sections.
Before this new policy change, students were required to take the full-length test each time they wanted to improve a score, allowing them a chance to improve a section they previously struggled with, but also putting them at risk for potentially performing worse on a section they had previously done well on. This new change eliminates the concern of jeopardizing scores on the other sections that students may want to keep, benefiting students overall.
Currently, the ACT costs $52 to take and $68 if students choose to take the ACT with the writing portion. Prices for retaking individual sections have not been released, but ACT officials have claimed that these prices will be cheaper than retaking the test in its entirety, according to the New York Times.
By reducing the price and allowing students to pay only for the section they wish to improve, this provides a more cost-effective solution to students who feel that they have been able to improve on a section enough to see this improvement reflected in their score. In addition to saving time, students will likely also save money through the ACT’s new policy.
The ACT implemented this change to ease the stress of enduring a three-hour test, plus a 40-minute optional writing test. Focusing throughout a three-hour test is a very difficult task, according to senior Nicole Scott, who has taken the test. Students with extended time have an even longer period of time during which they must stay focused, which can often exceed 4 hours.
Breaking up the test into 35-60 minute increments will make the test easier to focus on throughout and raise scores. In consideration of students’ health across the country, this new improvement will possibly lead to an overall less-stressful experience and higher scores.
According to the New York Times, this new policy creates even more opportunities for students with the resources to pay for tutors or extensive test prep materials to succeed beyond their lower-income peers, according to the New York Times.
Although the change will likely decrease student stress, it may also intensify competition as students grapple to perfect their score on every section and, therefore, put the students who do not devote the time or money at a disadvantage. Despite its shortcomings, however, the change in policy does indicate a desire from the ACT’s organizers to make the standardized test more student-friendly and less stressful for the millions of students taking it across the nation.
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