After the 2013-2014 school year, the EXPLORE test, which assessed all incoming freshmen, was retired. The departure of the long-established test left the opportunity for a new assessment to be introduced and distributed to all future LT students.

The EXPLORE test offered administrators a way to predict future ACT scores and aided in the process of placing students in classes. An old version of the test was given to future freshmen during the 2014-2015 school year, but due to the fact that retired tests are available online, students will no longer be taking the test this year, Director of Curriculum and Instruction Scott Eggerding said.

Aspire, an all-online assessment, replaced the EXPLORE test for the 2014-2015 school year. While some parochial schools use the Aspire test, its administration is not mandated by Illinois at this point, according to Coordinator of Assessment and Research Katie Smith.

“Our [state] chose PARCC, [but] they might turn around and go in [the direction of the Aspire test],” Smith said.

Budget issues in Springfield, combined with the fact that Illinois may decide to administer the SAT instead of the ACT to juniors, have contributed to the testing dilemma that LT faces.

“Before we decide to invest in a new test, we want to know if the state is going to be focusing on [a certain test] so that we’re not preparing students for the test they won’t be taking,” Eggerding said.

The SAT, which has been redesigned for 2016, is written by the same people involved with Advanced Placement (AP) courses, Eggerding said.

“They’re trying to package that all together, so if you take the PSAT, it’ll give you information on students who should take AP classes,” Eggerding said. “They see it as a big college preparation system, which is what ACT is doing, too.”

As for the incoming class of 2020, LT will be using any test scores students have from their respective middle school, as well as teacher recommendations and grades, to place freshmen in their leveled courses.

“We’ve lost an opportunity to track students all the way from eighth grade to high school,” Eggerding said. “It’s just going to be a little more difficult to have an outside test give us some information.”