A Study Of The Historical Development Of ACT

ACT is one of the most important American college entrance examinations.since its inception in 1959,after half a century 's development,ACT improves a lot in test content,test scores and examination management.According to the subject of examination in the reform,the author divided the development process into three stages:the stage of initial creation(1959-1989),the stage of reform(1989-2005)and the stage of perfection(since 2005).Each period is mainly analyzed from two aspects:background factors and development changes.In the conclusion section,The author analyzed the advantages of ACT and the influence on China's college entrance examination.This paper is mainly divided into three section:The first chapter is the stage of initial creation.Under the political and economiic promotion education need,ACT was put into practice.The initial stage mainly discusses the background of ACT,the creation and implementation of ACT,and the contents of examination management,examination content and test scores of this stage.The second chapter is the stage of ACT reform.At this stage,influenced by the background of the special time,ACT has undergone profound changes,Great changes have taken place in the examination subjects,changed from the original English,mathematical,social and natural sciences to English,mathematics,reading and scientific reasoning.The specific changes and characteristics of ACT in the new era are mainly reflected in examination contents and examination scores.The reasons for the changes are also analyzed.The third chapter is the perfecting stage of ACT.In 2005,ACT added a new subjective test——writing.the No Child Left Behind Act and standardized test are all important backgrounds for improvement.In the new era,there are many problems in the development of ACT,such as the stagnant of test scores,the number of examinees is decreasing,the demand for ACT scores is decreasing,and the overall level of students' College readiness has remained stable.