All teachers must play a part in building ACT and SAT culture. Core instructors around the tests are the driving force but every staff member must be invested in improving student outcomes. There are three key ways school leaders can proactively build capacity within their faculty – simulate the exam for them, ensure alignment of materials and instructional practices, and consistently lead from the front on all things related to ACT/SAT exams.

Share a Written Plan

Writing down a plan and sharing copies when you speak to groups does a couple of things. First, it ensures you are consistent in your communication. You hit all of your talking points and everyone hears the same message. Second, it allows people to process what you are saying in an additional way. Third, it better enables your audience to ask questions and offer feedback with precision. Finally, it’s a tool that they can refer to later on when they are at their desk or in a future meeting. 

Leaders will defensively say, “I had it all in my slides!”  Maybe so, but slides are just a visual to support that particular moment. PowerPoint is a helpful tool when presenting but it’s not a concrete plan that’s easy to reference. Creating a written version of your plan that includes goals, teacher and leader actions, and key milestones helps bring your vision to life and elevates the sense of community ownership over the initiative.

Reflection Questions for Designing a Written Plan:

• Vision and Goals:
  • What are the long-term and short-term goals for our ACT/SAT initiative?
  • How will each grade level contribute to ACT/SAT success? What is our 9-12 vision plan?
  • What resources and support will be provided to ensure the achievement of these goals?
• Practice Tests and Assessment:
  • When will practice tests be administered throughout the academic year?
  • How will student performance be monitored and assessed?
  • What mechanisms will be in place to analyze practice test data and identify areas for improvement?
• Curriculum and Instruction
  • What will be the content focus of the dedicated ACT/SAT class or integrated instruction?
  • How will teachers be supported in integrating ACT/SAT-aligned materials and strategies into their teaching?
  • What additional training or professional development opportunities will be provided to teachers?
• Resource Allocation
  • What resources will be provided for both students and teachers to support ACT/SAT preparation?
  • How will these resources be distributed and accessed by stakeholders?
  • Are there any potential barriers to resource accessibility, and how can they be addressed?

Run with a Playbook

A written plan outlines goals and high-level actions like scheduling practice exams and nailing down what resources will be utilized. School leaders need a playbook to guide their leadership between practice exams in order to maintain steady focus on the things that matter most. 

Unlike the written plan, the playbook focuses on the systems, tasks, and actions that school leaders and stakeholders must do regularly. The more granular and observable the better.

Example Introduction to Director of College’s Playbook

This is your playbook and you need your players to be able to follow along so the more thorough the plan and better prepared your teachers are to follow the script, the more likely your campus will achieve its goals. The most successful teams are those where each player knows their role and how it fits within the larger goal of the team. Getting this across is your role. What actions will you and your staff need to take in order to prepare your students to thrive on test day?

Reflection Questions for Creating a Playbook:

• Data Collection and Analysis:
  • What data will be collected to monitor progress towards ACT/SAT goals?
  • How will performance levels be assessed by school, cohort, and sub-population?
  • What mechanisms will be in place for ongoing data analysis and evaluation?
• Monitoring and Adjustment:
  • How frequently will progress be monitored, and by whom?
  • How will we determine what strategies are working and what needs adjustment?
  • What processes will be in place to facilitate continuous improvement based on data insights?
• Feedback and Communication:
  • How will feedback be collected from stakeholders, including teachers, students, parents, and administrators?
  • What channels will be used to share feedback and updates on ACT/SAT progress?
  • How will transparency and accountability be maintained throughout the implementation process?

By reflecting on these questions, school leaders can ensure that their written plan communicates their vision and their playbook offers a path for bringing that vision to life.

Building a positive school-wide culture around ACT and SAT assessments is challenging and essential. This blog is part of a series, “10 Strategies for Building a Culture of ACT and SAT Success,” where we’ve outlined strategies to help school leaders. If you have questions or need support as you build a school-wide culture, please reach out to Thomas O’Brien at thomas@winwardacademy.com.

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About Winward Academy – Winward Academy is one of the world’s leading innovators in the online education space, providing web-based academic support that enhances students’ knowledge, confidence, and competitiveness in middle and high school academics and in college applications. We help thousands of students every year by providing personalized, comprehensive ACT and SAT test preparation and extensive math curriculum support. The Winward Academy learning platform honors over 40 years of education and cognitive psychology research, incorporating proven techniques that promote effective learning.

Winward Academy’s unmatched reputation is wholly attributable to our students’ exceptional success and to the trust earned among students, parents, and schools around the world.