By Kyle Roberts
Dozens of incoming juniors and seniors from Ruston High, Choudrant High and Simsboro School gathered during the first week of June for the ACT boot camp in efforts to prepare the students for the American College Testing exam, commonly known as the ACT.
Courtney Martin serves as the math facilitator for Lincoln Parish Schools and oversaw the program hosted at Ruston High, which offered help for both students who would be taking the exam for the first time and for those who are looking to improve their scores.
“We try to break them into groups based on scores,” Martin said. “That way, we can really do some targeted practice with them because a student who has never taken the ACT before does not need the same kind of instructions as the student who is sitting there with a 28 and just wants to get a higher score.”
Based on conversations with Pre-AP English I teacher Jamie Gressett — who helped work the event with fellow educators Kelsey Whitlock, Mary Fowler and Stacy Campbell — the boot camp works well for students that attend.
“In the past, we’ve had students come tell us that the little tips and tricks helped,” Gressett said. “We try to help them learn how to make the best guess and eliminate wrong answers if you’re not sure. Students come and specifically tell us which tips have helped.”
Whitlock gets the same feedback as Gressett.
“As an eleventh grade ELA teacher, I have many students who take the boot camp the summer before their junior year,” Whitlock said. “Throughout the school year, these students express how the bootcamp really helped them have a better understanding of the test and that they feel more prepared throughout the year to take the ACT.
“My students who are going to be seniors often get their best score after the bootcamp and are so happy to have finally earned the score they have been aiming toward. For these students, it’s such a great opportunity to get an extensive review and an opportunity to practice right before the test.”
Martin says the heart behind the bootcamp is reducing testing anxiety on the ACT and commended the students who gave up time in the summer to come out.
“We want confident test takers,” Martin said. “And it’s a sweet gig for the teachers, because these are students who want to better themselves — nobody is making these kids come to the boot camp in the summer. “
The service was free for the students that signed up and covered English, Math, Science and Reading. The ACT boot camp is offered every summer and is also taught throughout the year in advisory periods.
“It’s good for people to know that all three of our high schools (Ruston, Choudrant and Simsboro) are working very hard within the classroom day-to-day,” Martin said. “That’s a big initiative of ours — we are pushing ACT prep and testing strategies. So we don’t have this just one time a year only. We’re really working every single day with ACT prep questions so that kids are familiar with those things.”
