Walking among classmates, graduation draws nearer, and the need to prepare for college begins to take its toll. The stress can start to sink in and frighten many students, but with the completion of just two tests, each student can be that much closer to being not only ready for graduation but also for college.
At LCM, every student is required to take the Texas Success Initiative Assessment (TSI) and pass both the English and math sections. Successfully completing these tests is essential for students to earn their College, Career, and Military Readiness (CCMR) points and to qualify for college courses.
“Several years ago, Texas implemented a college-ready placement test that all Texas public colleges use to determine the math and English skills of incoming students,” Coordinator of Higher Ed/Dual Credit Marcia Brown said. “Every college determines if students are ready for the college courses or if they need more education in math or English before they will be able to pass the college course. Students who score ‘college-ready’ can enroll in any entry-level college course without intervention. Students who are not quite college-ready will have to take remediation courses at college to be prepared for their college courses. It is not an admittance test – but is a placement test.”
With the crucial aspect of the TSI at hand, it is important for students to begin preparing as soon as possible, so they are well equipped for anything the TSI throws at them. To start, students should complete the pre-assessment activity.
“Each student must complete a mandatory Pre-Assessment Activity (PAA) before the state will allow them to take the test,” Brown said. “For the PAA, the student creates an account and reviews the purpose and importance of the test in relation to their college courses. They will also take ten sample English test questions as well as ten sample math questions with immediate feedback on whether they answered each one correctly or why another answer was better. Once finished, they will print a certificate of completion that must be provided before they can take the test.”
After each student completes their PAA, they will be provided with practice information to help them prepare for the TSI. Students can also get in touch with their teachers to discuss how they can better prepare for the test. It is important for a student to pay attention to when the TSI will be offered to them specifically.
“Juniors who have not already passed the English TSI will be taking it the last week in February,” Brown said. “Sophomores who request dual credit courses that require college-ready English skills will take it the first week in March. Students in Algebra 2 and those who need college-ready math scores for dual-credit requests will take it the last week of March. Seniors can sign up with Ms. Brown to find out when they can take the TSI.”
After adequately preparing, students will take the TSI test to the best of their ability. Both the English and the math tests have certain score requirements, and the score needed to pass varies depending on which test the students take.
“The TSI is an untimed test, and the questions adapt to the skill level of the tester,” Brown said. “Currently, the TSI consists of two subject tests – English and math. The English test consists of two parts – multiple-choice questions and an essay. The state has set a college-ready score (945 on the multiple choice and 5 on the essay). Students who do not score at least 945 on the first 30 multiple-choice questions will immediately start a second multiple-choice diagnostic test that has 48 questions. If they score a 5 on the diagnostic, then they are college-ready. The essay will immediately follow completion of the multiple-choice questions. The math test is 20 multiple-choice questions – a score of 950 is college-ready, or students must score a 6 on the second diagnostic test. Scores are available immediately upon completion of the test.”
Each student’s first attempt is free; if for any reason they are unable to pass on their first attempt, they are allowed to retest an unlimited number of times. LCM offers two retake attempts before the students must go to a testing center if they wish to continue retaking the test.
“Each retest costs students five dollars for math, ten dollars for English (or five dollars if just retesting the essay or the multiple choice),” Brown said. “Every Texas college offers the test to their incoming students – the cost can vary quite a bit. The LSCO Testing Center offers the test and charges $11 for math and $17 for English.”
Students can demonstrate college readiness using other tests if they meet the minimum score requirements, instead of the TSI. These include the SAT (English: 480, Math: 530), the ACT (English + Reading: 40, Math: 22), and Texas College Bridge (completion of English or Math modules). However, the Texas College Bridge test is currently only available for accepted seniors and is not accepted by all Texas colleges. Scores are valid for two years and may have limitations on course options. Passing any of these tests is important not only to show college readiness but also to earn a CCMR point.
“Passing both the Math and the English TSI is one way students can earn their CCMR point – which the state wants every student to have prior to graduation,” Brown said. “Another way to earn a CCMR point is to complete nine college credits or three college classes. The only dual credit courses that require TSI college-ready English scores are English Three and Four, Government, and US History Two. The only dual credit courses that require TSI college-ready math scores are College Algebra and Pre-Calculus. Science and technical CTE courses do not require TSI scores.”
