The number of high school juniors taking the voluntary Early Assessment Program to evaluate their preparedness for college-level English and math has increased 55 percent to 153 percent in the last six years.

This year, 378,870 California high school students took the English test and 178,667 took the math test.

Thirty-two out of 112 California community colleges have adopted the program, according to a report by the California Community College chancellor’s office.

“More and more students are taking it because everyone involved has a benefit,” said Joy Salvetti, director of Sacramento State’s Early Assessment Program.

Going through the program can exempt students from taking English and math placement tests when they enter the CSU system, said Erik Fallis, spokesman for the CSU chancellor’s office.

Fallis said the program was created because students came to the CSU not fully prepared for college-level English and math. Students then had to take remediation classes that do not count toward a degree and can prolong their years in college, he said.

Taking remediation classes delays a student’s identification as a college student, Salvetti said.

In Sacramento high schools, the number of students taking the test since 2006 has increased 14 percent for the English test and 28 percent for math.

Of the students who took the English test this year, 20 percent demonstrated readiness for college, a 3 percent increase from 2006.

For students who took the math portion this year, 14 percent demonstrated readiness for college, compared with 10 percent in 2006.

The English and math tests are free for all high school juniors.

Taking the tests can show students what classes to take during their senior year before entering the CSU system.

“The reasoning behind giving it in the high school junior year was that students would then have their high school senior year to take specific courses to help them ready themselves,” Salvetti said.

The optional Early Assessment Program exam takes place in May after the California Standards Test. The English and math tests consist of 15 multiple choice questions in addition to the standards test. Students will take the 45-minute English essay portion in March to allow time for scoring.

The English test is scored as either ready or not ready. Students who are ready do not need to take the CSU placement test or take an English remediation course, Salvetti said.

Fewer students are qualified to take the math portion because it is not required throughout all four years of high school, Salvetti said. When students take the math exam, they can receive a ready, not ready or conditionally ready result.

Salvetti said a conditionally ready result means students scored close to a ready result. If students receive a conditionally ready result, they can take a math class with an Algebra II or higher prerequisite. If they get a C or better, they will not have to take a remediation math class at the CSU.

Students deemed “not ready” may take an expository English course to learn non-fiction and critical thinking before entering college. They may take a math class during senior year to put them at the college level.

When the program was started, Salvetti was teaching Italian at Sac State, and saw first-hand the readiness students needed before coming to college, especially in English, she said.

“I experienced how students did not feel totally rooted in their college experience,” Salvetti said. “What I have seen since its early inception has been proof to me that there is a benefit to this program, if only to bring all education segments together.”

Michelle Curtis can be reached at [email protected].