The linked article, by Larry Gavin, cites support for using the ACT’s college readiness benchmarks to set targets for grades 3-12. The article also summarizes some of the research that assesses the effectiveness of the ACT in measuring cognitive capabilities and in predicting college success and that considers the practical import of obtaining relatively high ACT scores.
The article also reports the ISAT scores identified by Paul Zavitkovsky that indicate a student is on track to college readiness at third through eighth grades. Mr. Zavitkovsky was a leadership coach at the doctoral program at the Urban Education Leadership Program at the University of Illinois – Chicago, and a data analyst specialist. He did extensive analyses of student test scores and trends in achievement at School Districts 65 and 202 in 2010 and 2011.
The benchmark scores identified by Mr. Zavitkovsky were adopted by the District 65 School Board in setting goals for on-track to college readiness.
The article is available here.