COLLEGE
READINESS
Benefits of a High School
Core Curriculum
Since the publication of A Nation at Risk, ACT has recommended that students take
a core curriculum in high school in order to be prepared for college-level work. ACT’s
recommended core curriculum consists of four years of English and three years each of
mathematics, science, and social studies. The benefits to students of taking the right
number of core preparatory courses in high school have been well documented by
ACT research. More recently, ACT research has also shown that taking certain specific
courses in high school, such as Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and mathematics courses
including Algebra II and beyond, substantially increases students’ readiness for college-
level work as well as their readiness for workforce training programs.
The purpose of this brief is to summarize ACT’s research on the core curriculum. In the
following sections we describe the relative benefits of taking the ACT-recommended
core curriculum, and of taking specific high school courses. The brief is divided into
two parts: benefits for academic achievement and college and workforce training
readiness, and benefits for college success. Unless otherwise specified, the results
reported below are based on the 2005 ACT-tested high school graduating class, totaling
about 1.2 million students. Of these students, 56 percent took the core curriculum and
34 percent took less than the core curriculum.
1
Students who take the
ACT-recommended core
curriculum in high school
achieve higher ACT scores
than those who don’t.
Higher ACT scores offer
students more opportunities
for access to college
I. Benefits of Taking a Core Curriculum and Specific High School
Courses for Academic Achievement and College and Workforce
Training Readiness
▼ Students who take the ACT-recommended core curriculum in high school
achieve higher ACT scores than those who don’t, regardless of gender, family
income, and racial/ethnic background.
• Compared to graduates who do not take the core curriculum, graduates who take
the core curriculum earn ACT scores that are 2.1 to 2.8 points higher.
and scholarships.
• For all racial/ethnic groups, students who take the core curriculum score between
1.6 and 2.8 points higher on the ACT Composite than those who do not take the
core.
2
17.7
20.8
17.4
19.5
20.3
20.4
Average ACT score
25
20
15
10
5
0
Non-Core Core
English Mathematics Reading Science Composite
18.8
21.6
19.1
21.7
19.8
22.2
19.6
21.7
19.5
21.9
Average ACT Composite score
25
20
15
10
5
0
African American Asian Hispanic White
American Indian American
16.1
17.7
20.8
22.7
17.4
19.5
17.5
20.3
20.4
22.8
Non-Core Core
• For males and females, average ACT Composite scores of core takers are 2.2 to
2.7 points higher than those of non-core takers.
• Across family income groups, average ACT Composite scores of core takers are
1.9 to 2.3 points higher than those of non-core takers.
Non-Core Core
30
Average ACT Composite score
25
20
15
10
5
0
19.5
22.2
19.5
21.7
17.4
19.4
19.9
22.2 22.2
24.1
Taking upper-level courses
beyond core improves
achievement of all students.
Males Females Income Income Income
<$30,000 $30,000 to >$100,000
$100,000
▼ Taking upper-level courses beyond core improves achievement of all students,
regardless of gender, family income, and racial/ethnic background.
• Compared to students who take less than the three core mathematics courses
(Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II), those who take these three courses score
slightly higher (0.3 score point higher) on the ACT Mathematics Test. Students
who also take either Trigonometry or at least one other advanced mathematics
course (excluding Calculus) score about 2.5 points higher than those who take
only core mathematics courses. Moreover, students who take both Trigonometry
and Calculus, in addition to the three core mathematics courses, score 6.8 points
higher than graduates who take only the three core mathematics courses.
30
Average ACT Mathematics score
25
20
15
10
5
0
24.5
22.1
20.3
20.2
17.7
17.4
Less than
3 years
Algebra I, II,
Geometry
Algebra I, II,
Geometry,
other
advanced
Algebra I, II, Algebra I, II, Algebra I, II,
Geometry, Geometry, Geometry,
Trigonometry Trigonometry, Trigonometry,
other Calculus
math advanced
math
3
• Compared to students who take less than three years of natural science courses,
students who take General Science, Biology, and Chemistry in high school score
1.2 points higher on the ACT Science Test.
• Students who take Physics in addition to General Science, Biology, and Chemistry
score 2.2 points higher than those who take only the latter three courses. Those
who take Biology, Chemistry, and Physics score 3.0 points higher than those
students who take General Science, Biology, and Chemistry.
2
25
Average ACT Science score
20
15
10
5
0
23.1
22.3
20.1
18.9
Students gain from
taking more rigorous
courses, regardless of
their achievement level.
This means that students
with lower high school
grade point averages
can benefit from taking
rigorous courses.
Less than General Science, General Science, Biology,
3 years Biology, Biology, Chemistry,
Chemistry Chemistry, Physics
Physics
▼ Even when students’ achievement levels are taken into account, students gain
from taking more rigorous courses.
Because students select the courses they take, we conducted an additional analysis
to determine whether the value added by these courses was dependent on student
achievement level (that is, whether only the high-achieving students take and
benefit from taking a particular course). To do this, we controlled for student
achievement by using students’ self-reported high school grade point average and
grade level. We then looked at the benefits of taking particular courses for students
in different ranges of high school grade point average.
• Students who take Trigonometry, Calculus, or other advanced mathematics
courses beyond Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II score 1.7 points higher on the
ACT Mathematics Test than students who take only the three core mathematics
courses, regardless of prior achievement. Cumulatively, the potential score
increase for students who take Trigonometry, Calculus, and at least one other
upper-level mathematics course beyond core is 5.6 score points, regardless of
prior achievement.
ACT Mathematics
score increase
6.0
5.0
4.0
3.0
2.0
1.0
0.0
5.6
3.6
1.7
Algebra I, II,
Geometry,
other
Algebra I, II,
Geometry,
other
Algebra I, II
Geometry,
other
advanced advanced advanced
math math, math,
Trigonometry Trigonometry,
Calculus
4
23.1
22.3
20.1
5.6
• Students who take Chemistry in addition to Biology score 1.3 points higher on the
ACT Science Test than students who take only Biology, regardless of prior
achievement. Taken together, Chemistry and Physics can increase student scores
on the ACT Science Test by as much as 2.7 points over those attained by taking
Biology only.
3.0
ACT Science
score increase
2.0
1.0
0.0
2.7
1.3
Students who take one or
more courses beyond core
are more likely to meet or
exceed the ACT College
Readiness Benchmarks.
This means that these
students are more likely to
enter college, be ready
to take credit-bearing
college courses, and succeed
Biology, Chemistry Biology, Chemistry, Physics
• Similar patterns of ACT Mathematics and Science score increases are seen for
low- and high-achieving students.
3
▼ Students who take one or more courses beyond core are more likely to meet or
exceed the ACT College Readiness Benchmarks.
• Compared to students who take only Algebra I, Geometry, and Algebra II, students
who also take Trigonometry are almost three times more likely to meet the College
Readiness Benchmark in Mathematics, and students who take both Trigonometry
and Calculus are about five times more likely to meet the Mathematics Benchmark.
in those courses.
Percent meeting ACT Mathematics Benchmark
100
80
60
40
20
0
73
56
38
14
Algebra I, II, Algebra I, II, Algebra I, II, Algebra I, II,
Geometry Geometry, Geometry, Geometry,
Trigonometry Trigonometry, other Trigonometry,
advanced math Calculus
5
• Compared to students who take less than three years of science in high school,
students who take General Science, Biology, and Chemistry are more likely
to meet the ACT College Readiness Benchmark in Science (19 percent vs.
13 percent). Students who also take Physics are about three times more likely
to meet the Science Benchmark (38 percent or 45 percent vs. 19 percent) than
students who take only General Science, Biology, and Chemistry.
4
Percent meeting ACT Science Benchmark
100
80
60
40
20
0
45
38
19
13
Less than General Science, General Science, Biology,
3 years Biology, Biology, Chemistry, Chemistry,
Chemistry Physics Physics
Compared to high school
graduates who do not take
the recommended core
curriculum, graduates
who take the core are
more likely to be ready
for workforce training.
▼ Compared to high school graduates who do not take the recommended core
curriculum, graduates who take the core are more likely to be ready for
workforce training programs.
5
• In a state where all public school juniors take WorkKeys, the average Applied
Mathematics score of students who take the core curriculum is higher than the
Workforce Training Readiness Benchmark for Applied Mathematics (Level 5),
while the average score of students who do not take the core is lower than this
Benchmark.
• The average Reading for Information score of students who take the core
curriculum is higher than the Workforce Training Readiness Benchmark for
Reading for Information (Level 5), while the average score of students who do
not take the core is lower than this Benchmark.
Non-Core Core
6
Average WorkKeys score
5
4
3
2
1
0
4.2
5.4
4.3
5.1
Applied Mathematics Reading for Information
6
5.4
• In the same state, students who take the core curriculum are more likely than
students who do not take the core to meet the Workforce Training Readiness
Benchmark for Applied Mathematics (77 percent vs. 47 percent).
• Students who take the core curriculum are more likely than students who do not
take the core to meet the Workforce Training Readiness Benchmark for Reading
for Information (72 percent vs. 45 percent).
Non-Core Core
100
Percent meeting Benchmark
47
77
45
72
80
60
40
20
0
African American Asian Hispanic White Total group
American Indian American
Students who take
the recommended
core curriculum
enroll in college at
a higher rate than
those who do not.
Applied Mathematics Reading for Information
II. Benefits of Taking a Core Curriculum for College Success
▼ Students who take the recommended core curriculum enroll in college at a
higher rate than those who do not, regardless of gender, family income, and
racial/ethnic background.
• Students who take the core curriculum are more likely than those who do not
take the core to enroll in college in the fall following graduation (72 percent vs.
60 percent for the total group).
6
Non-Core Core
100
80
54
63
67
74
63
55
49
61
74
60
41
Percent enrolled
60
40
20
0
72
7
▼ Students who take the core curriculum have higher college retention rates than
students who do not take the core, regardless of gender, family income, and
racial/ethnic background.
• Students who take the core curriculum are more likely than those who do not
take the core to re-enroll in the same postsecondary institution for a second year
of college (76 percent vs. 69 percent for the total group).
7
Taking upper-level courses
beyond core in high school
improves college retention
for all students.
▼ Taking upper-level courses beyond core in high school improves college
retention for all students, regardless of gender, family income, and
racial/ethnic background.
• Students who take at least the three core mathematics courses are more likely
than students who take fewer mathematics courses to re-enroll in the same
postsecondary institution their second year (70 percent vs. 61 percent).
8
• Students who take Trigonometry and Calculus in addition to the core mathematics
courses are most likely to re-enroll in the same postsecondary institution their
second year.
9
100
Percent re-enrolled
80
60
40
20
0
83
81
78
75
70
61
Less than
3 years
Algebra I, II,
Geometry
Algebra I, II,
Geometry,
other
advanced
Algebra I, II, Algebra I, II, Algebra I, II,
Geometry, Geometry, Geometry,
Trigonometry Trigonometry, Trigonometry,
other Calculus
math advanced
math
8
71
58
66
78
82
74
77
69
83
81
75
Percent re-enrolled
100
80
60
40
20
0
African American Asian Hispanic White Total group
American Indian American
Non-Core Core
63
71
78
82
69
74
69
77
69
76
58
66
• Students who take Biology and Chemistry in high school are more likely than
those who take only Biology to re-enroll in the same postsecondary institution
their second year (74 percent vs. 64 percent).
10
• Students who take Biology, Chemistry, and Physics are most likely to re-enroll in
the same postsecondary institution their second year.
11
100
Percent re-enrolled
80
60
40
20
0
80
74
64
61
Students who take the
core curriculum in
high school are less likely
to need remedial coursework
in college than students
who do not take the core.
Less than Biology Biology, Biology,
Biology Chemistry Chemistry,
Physics
• Similar results are found for all gender, family income, and racial/ethnic groups.
▼ Students who take the core curriculum in high school are less likely to need
remedial coursework in college than students who do not take the core,
regardless of gender, family income, and racial/ethnic background.
• ACT-tested students who take the core curriculum in high school are less likely
than those who do not take the core to take remedial English or mathematics
courses in college (10 percent vs. 16 percent for English, and 15 percent vs.
25 percent for
mathematics).
12
Non-Core Core
100
Percent remediated
80
60
40
20
0
16
10
25
15
English Mathematics
9
64
The lower the level
of mathematics courses
students take in high school,
the more likely they are to
take remedial mathematics
courses in college.
• Differences in remediation rates between core takers and non-core takers are
similar for all gender, family income, and racial/ethnic groups.
• The lower the level of mathematics courses students take in high school, the more
likely they are to take remedial mathematics courses in college. For example,
students who take only the three core mathematics courses are more than twice as
likely to take remedial mathematics courses in college as students who also take
Trigonometry.
• Students who take Trigonometry and Calculus in addition to the three core
mathematics courses are least likely to take remedial mathematics courses in
college.
Percent taking remedial mathematics courses
100
80
60
40
20
0
4
6
10
17
26
42
Less than
3 years
Algebra I, II,
Geometry
Algebra I, II,
Geometry,
other
advanced
Algebra I, II, Algebra I, II, Algebra I, II,
Geometry, Geometry, Geometry,
Trigonometry Trigonometry, Trigonometry,
other Calculus
math advanced
math
10
Students who take
the recommended core
curriculum in high school
are more likely than those
who do not to succeed in
first-year college courses.
When students succeed
in college courses, they are
significantly more likely
to stay in college and
attain a degree.
▼ Students who take the recommended core curriculum in high school are more
likely than those who do not take the core to succeed in first-year college
courses, regardless of gender, family income, and racial/ethnic background.
13
• Students who take the core curriculum in high school are more likely than students
who do not take the core to achieve a B or higher grade in English Composition
(65 percent vs. 55 percent).
• Students who take the core curriculum are more likely than students who do not
take the core to achieve a B or higher grade in College Algebra (43 percent vs.
35 percent).
• Students who take the core curriculum are more likely than students who do not
take the core to achieve a B or higher grade in College Biology (49 percent vs.
35 percent).
• Differences in success rates between core and non-core students are fairly similar
across gender, family income, and racial/ethnic groups.
• Success in College Algebra increases with the level of high school mathematics
coursework taken. For example, taking Trigonometry and Calculus in high school
in addition to the core mathematics courses almost doubles students’ chances of
success in College Algebra. Similar results are found for all gender, family
income, and racial/ethnic groups.
Percent B or higher in College Algebra
100
80
60
40
20
0
61
51
44
44
33
27
Less than
3 years
Algebra I, II,
Geometry
Algebra I, II,
Geometry,
other
advanced
Algebra I, II, Algebra I, II, Algebra I, II,
Geometry, Geometry, Geometry,
Trigonometry Trigonometry, Trigonometry,
other Calculus
math advanced
math
11
Percent B or higher
100
80
60
40
20
0
English College College
Composition Algebra Biology
55
65
Non-Core Core
35
43
35
49
• Success in College Biology increases with the level of high school science
coursework taken. For example, taking Chemistry and Physics in high school in
addition to Biology almost doubles students’ chances of success in College
Biology. Similar results are found for all gender, family income, and racial/ethnic
groups.
Percent B or higher in College Biology
100
80
60
40
20
0
53
45
29
21
Less than Biology Biology, Biology,
Biology Chemistry Chemistry,
Physics
Students who take the
core curriculum in
high school tend to earn
higher first-year college
GPAs than students who
do not take the core.
▼ Students who take the core curriculum in high school tend to earn higher
first-year college GPAs than students who do not take the core, regardless of
gender, family income, and racial/ethnic background.
• Students who take the core curriculum are more likely than students who do not
take the core to earn a first-year college GPA of 2.0 or higher (85 percent vs.
78 percent) or 3.0 or higher (49 percent vs. 40 percent).
14
Non-Core Core
100
Percent
80
60
40
20
0
40
49
78
85
GPA ≥ 3.0 GPA ≥ 2.0
12
78
85
Summary
In this brief we have summarized ACT research showing that students benefit by
taking the ACT-recommended core curriculum (identified as four years of English and
three years each of mathematics, science, and social studies) and certain specific
courses in high school in the following ways:
▼ Benefits for academic achievement and college and workforce training readiness
• Higher ACT scores
• Higher WorkKeys scores
• Greater chance of being ready for college and workforce training programs
• Increased readiness associated with taking particular courses such as Algebra II,
upper
-level mathematics, Chemistry, and Physics
▼ Benefits for college success
• Greater chance of enrolling in college
• Greater chance of persisting to a second year of college at the same institution
• Lesser chance of needing remedial coursework in college
• Greater chance of succeeding in selected first-year college courses
• Greater chance of achieving higher first-year college GPAs
It is clear from our research that students who take the ACT-recommended core
curriculum in high school are better prepared for college and workforce training
programs, and are more likely to be successful in college, than students who do not
take the
ACT-recommended core.
13
Notes
1
These percentages do not sum to 100 because not all students report their course
taking information.
2
The difference in performance between the Biology–Chemistry–Physics sequence and
the General Science–Biology–Chemistry–Physics sequence is likely due to the types
of students who elect to take these particular course sequences. Because students select
the courses they take, the average test scores associated with course patterns reflect not
only the contribution of course content but also the achievement level of the students
who elect to take a particular course sequence.
3
Low- and high-achieving students were identified as those with high school grade
point averages of 0.0 to 2.99 and 3.00 to 4.00, respectively.
4
See note 2 for more information about these course patterns.
5
These results are based on Spring 2004 WorkKeys data. WorkKeys scores lower than
3 are treated as zero. This does not substantially affect the results reported.
6
These results are based on 2003 ACT-tested high school graduates.
7
These results are based on 2003 ACT-tested high school graduates who enrolled in
college in Fall 2003.
8
See note 7.
9
See note 7.
10
See note 7.
11
See note 7.
12
These results are based on ACT-tested 1993–2004 high school graduates who enrolled
in college.
13
These results are based on data for ACT-tested 1993–2004 high school graduates who
enrolled in standard, credit-bearing college English Composition, College Algebra, or
College Biology courses.
14
These results are based on ACT-tested 1993–2004 high school graduates who enrolled
in college and had a valid first-year college GPA.
© 2006 by ACT, Inc. All rights reserved.
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14
