ACT® Scores Improve in All Four Subjects for Canton High School Juniors Utilizing Jumpstart Test Prep
ACT English, ACT Math, ACT Reading and ACT Science scores show significant improvement over best prior scores, with 55 percent improving an average of +1.8 composite points
BROOKHAVEN, Miss., May 13, 2020 (Newswire.com) - Today, Jumpstart Test Prep released the ACT improvement results from Canton High School (CHS), whose junior class used the program to prepare for the state-administered February 2020 ACT® exam (American College Testing). Following completion of Jumpstart’s complete ACT prep review, over 60 percent of the students had an average ACT English score improvement of +2.9 points over their best prior attempt. Similarly, the school had more than 47 percent of its students improving their Math scores by an average of +2.0 points and nearly 50 percent improving by an average of +3.1 points in Science and +2.9 points in Reading test sub-scores.
“During my tenure as principal at Canton High School, I have faced many challenges, and one of the greatest was advancing the performance of my students on the ACT,” said Dr. Pamela Self, principal of Canton High School. “Originally, my goal for the students participating in the ACT initiative at the school would be to score a minimum of 17 on ACT subtests. By making a 17 on the ACT, that score could replace a graduation-required state test in Algebra I, English II, Biology and/or U.S. History. This initiative worked and increased our graduation rate. More are also scoring as college- and career-ready.”
Student feedback on the Jumpstart Test Prep program is strong. Yasmine Jeffrey, CHS junior student, said, “My school provided a program that really helped my fellow classmates and my ACT scores to grow. The Jumpstart program broke down each part of the ACT test to us and showed how we could manage our time better. The program gave us help on how to answer the questions quickly and effectively. I’m really glad my principal, Dr. Self, made it possible to have it implemented into our studies.” Yasmine had taken the ACT twice before the Jumpstart Program. She improved 4 composite points over her best prior score that included an 8-point reading score improvement, a 5-point math improvement, and a 3-point reading improvement.
Dr. Self explained that part of the ACT initiative at Canton High School was the implementation of ACT classes in the school’s master schedule. They also provided two boot camps in coordination with the Jumpstart review. Lastly, they utilized and trained their teachers on subject-specific resources such as Jumpstart.
Another CHS junior student, Marterrion Fulton, shared, “I appreciated the program the school provided to us. Jumpstart provided a breakdown of each part of the ACT. The teachers helped us to understand questions we didn’t understand for each part of the ACT. I really appreciated their assistance. We also received tips on how to manage our time better when you take the test. All of this really helped me.” Marterrion improved 3 composite points over his first ACT attempt that included a 9-point improvement over his prior Science score.
Analysis of the MSA’s results was conducted by third-party Jake Hoskins, Ph.D. “Testing the difference (both in raw change and in percentage terms) between the post- and pre-exam scores is a highly attractive approach to assessing the success of the Jumpstart Test Prep program. This simple metric of the program’s effectiveness allows the student-specific factors to be canceled out (as they are present in both measurements). Thus, confounding factors such as student aptitude, home situation, family income, etc., are all effectively controlled for with this analysis approach. We found that more than half of students showed improvement (after the Jumpstart review) in each sub-area of the exam (see Figure 1 and Figure 2 below)."
“Scores improved substantially,” Hoskins added, “As can be seen by Figure 2.”
Many CHS students demonstrated major improvements:
- Math – 21 students improved 3 or more points including multiple +5- and +6-point improvements.
- Science – 37 students improved 3 or more points including multiple +8- and +9-point improvements.
- English – 43 students improved 3 or more points including a +8- and +9-point improvements.
- Reading – 39 students improved 3 or more points including multiple +7- and +8- point improvements.
Teachers at Canton High proctored the streaming video-based review in their classrooms and reinforced the program by ensuring student understanding and providing additional practice questions before the exam.
“I truly enjoyed implementing Jumpstart into our ACT Prep Bootcamp for the juniors. The Jumpstart presenters gave a lot of helpful tips and taught test-taking strategies and broke down the math content,” said Kiara Doty, Algebra I & II/SREB teacher. “The fill-in-the-blank workbooks and step-by-step instruction videos worked hand in hand as the students attentively watched the videos to complete the review sections of the workbook. I highly recommend the Jumpstart Test Prep review for the ACT.”
“Canton High School implemented a complete ACT prep review that consisted of English, Math, Science, and Reading modules where Dr. Self configured the implementation of the review into the school’s master schedule so their juniors could complete this program within 2-4 weeks before test day as prescribed,” said Sha Walker, co-founder and CEO of Jumpstart Test Prep. “In order to be fully prepared, students need a complete review of the content they will see on the ACT®, along with all the tips, test-taking strategies, and realistic question practice that we provide.”
Jumpstart Test Prep has constructed an online review program based on over 40 years of work by Mississippi’s 19-year STAR teacher hall-of-fame inductee: the legendary educator and tutor Dot McClendon. Its consistent quality, prestige, and innovation is a culmination of her lifetime experience.
“As a teacher at The Mississippi School of the Arts and several other schools during my career, I was able to help guide the preparation of their students in person,” said McClendon. “Now through our on-demand video review, students in CHS classrooms, as well as classrooms around the county, and around the breakfast table or couch at home are able to benefit from our approach.”
This global pandemic has disrupted many areas of our lives, but none as evident in the academic environment.
“With this year’s pandemic fallout, parents and children at home are struggling to achieve academic continuity. The Jumpstart Test Prep ACT review can serve to build knowledge and skills as well," said Walker. “My 8th-grade son is completing a Jumpstart Math module a day with his workbook, and he’s learning concepts not yet covered in class.”
The company’s website, www.jumpstarttestprep.com, describes its program as a review utilizing streaming video modules that are delivered on-demand. The program is designed for classroom integration or individual study and proven to help students of all ability levels stay fully engaged and gain the most improvement in the shortest time by explaining difficult content in a way that every student can follow and understand. Students follow and complete the accompanying workbook as the review proceeds. Modules review the must-know content, include testing strategies specific to the exam, and conclude with realistic question practice modeled from actual "retired" exams that are provided under time constraint. According to student reviews of the program on the website, the program helps students with time management, allowing them to work faster on test day.
The company has found that when students are coached step by step, they can quickly secure significant gains, regardless of their initial proficiency in the subject area.
Walker and McClendon cite the top three competitive distinctions of Jumpstart Test Prep:
- Proven exam prep expertise honed over a lifetime of successful results. The content review is delivered on-demand. It is highly visual and animated. Students respond to the ACT®-style practice questions.
- The Jumpstart Test Prep review is engaging, not boring. Presented by a group of fun, young, diverse people, and presented in short 30-minute segments. Students must actively engage as they follow along in their
workbook to build flashcards by completing the blanks and work ACT®-style practice problems as the online review progresses.
- Improved time management. Jumpstart Test Prep reviews content step by step and then shows how to apply that content with follow-up examples. The examples are followed with challenge questions, allowing a clock-timer countdown. Time is critical on the ACT® and by the end of our review, Jumpstart Test Prep students know the average amount of time they can allocate per question and what to do when too much time has elapsed.
All juniors at CHS had access to the following resources:
- Expert content review and practice, along with test-taking tips and strategies delivered in the classroom via streaming video
- Online, on-demand, 24-hour review (36 modules, approximately 40 minutes each) of English, Math, Reading, and Science content tested by the ACT® that could be led from the classroom or used individually by students through May 2020
- Consumable student workbooks for each subject area to be completed as lecture content was watched and later used as a student study guide
- On-demand support
School administrators utilized an online dashboard reflecting the video module completion progress of teachers assigned to proctor the review and/or individual student progress.
The company’s ACT® subject area prep can be purchased individually à la carte at www.jumpstarttestprep.com.
About Jumpstart Test Prep
Jumpstart Test Prep (www.jumpstarttestprep.com) is a leading provider of educational services for individuals and schools. Established in 2015, Jumpstart Test Prep is a strong leader in the test prep industry.
Jumpstart's streaming video modules are delivered on-demand, and are designed for classroom integration or individual study. Jumpstart’s methodology is proven to help students of all ability levels stay fully engaged and gain the most score improvement in the shortest time by explaining difficult content in a way that every student can follow and understand. Each module reviews the must-know content, includes testing strategies specific to the exam, and concludes with realistic question practice.
Jumpstart Test Prep currently provides exam preparation for the ACT®, GED®, HiSet®, TASC®, Praxis® Core, and ACT WorkKeys®.
For more information on Jumpstart Test Prep, please visit https://www.jumpstarttestprep.com/ and visit them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/pg/jumpstarttestprep/reviews/.
Media Contact:
Robert Cadogan
Email: info@jumpstarttestprep.com
Phone: 833-835-8329
ACT® and ACT WorkKeys® are registered trademarks of ACT, Inc.
GED® is a registered trademark of American Council on Education Corp.
HiSet® and Praxis® are registered trademarks of Educational Testing Service.
TASC® Test Assessing Secondary Completion is the registered trademark of Data Recognition Corp.
Jumpstart Test Prep is not affiliated with or endorsed by any of these companies.
Source: Jumpstart Test Prep
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