American+College+Testing+Program+(ACT)

American College Testing Program (ACT):
The American Testing Program was created in 1959, at a time when "U.S. political and demographical developments were inspiring major changes in attitudes towards, and approaches to, higher education."(1) Before the founding of the American College Testing, there was only one national college-entry testing program, which focused on only those students who did well in secondary school looking to further ther education. Other college hopefuls were left with tests offered by individual states or colleges to work with, or they could get by on family ties. As financial aid increased, and colleges were looking to increase their enrollment, the groundwork for the American College Testing was placed. It was developed for two purposes - to help students better decide which college to attend and which program to study, and to give colleges information to enroll students and ensure academic success at their school. In 1996, the name ACT was adpoted as a shorter moniker. Later, in 2005, the ACT was taken globally.

What We Believed:
Originally, the SATs were the only college placement tests available to the public, aside from individual tests offered by states and colleges.

What We Believe Now:
Now there are many placement tests available, ranging from less-expensive tests to tests that focus on specific areas of academic study.

How We Act that Shows We Still Believe Old Belief:
The SATs are the most mainstream college placement testing, so it is better known throughout secondary schools than the others, although the ACT's name does pop up more often. The SATs also focus on the "3 R's", in a sense, while the ACT doesn't test writing, but it does test for science, whereas the SATs do not.

(1) History of the ACT - http://www.act.org/aboutact/history.html