{"id":18628,"date":"2025-09-25T14:55:16","date_gmt":"2025-09-25T18:55:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/progresslearning.com\/?p=18628"},"modified":"2025-10-01T16:42:23","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T20:42:23","slug":"wisconsin-act-cut-scores","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/progresslearning.com\/news-blog\/wisconsin-act-cut-scores\/","title":{"rendered":"Understanding Wisconsin\u2019s ACT\u00ae Cut Scores: What They Mean for College and Career Readiness"},"content":{"rendered":"

For Wisconsin<\/a> educators, understanding ACT<\/a>\u00ae benchmark scores isn’t just about college readiness<\/a>\u2014they play a key role in state accountability and student support. Since 2015, Wisconsin has required all 11th graders to take the ACT\u00ae as their primary summative assessment, making these benchmarks critical for students, teachers, and school accountability.<\/span><\/p>\n

In 2024, Wisconsin took a significant step by establishing specific cut scores that group students into four distinct achievement categories. Let’s explore what these changes mean for your students and how you can better prepare them for success.<\/span><\/p>\n

Wisconsin’s Updated ACT\u00ae Cut Scores<\/b><\/h2>\n

The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction (DPI)<\/span><\/a> now categorizes student performance into four levels: <\/span>Advanced, Proficient, Basic, <\/b>and<\/span> Below Basic<\/b>. These Wisconsin-specific cut scores differ from ACT\u00ae’s college readiness benchmarks, which focus on predicting success in first-year college courses, and instead reflect Wisconsin\u2019s broader goals for measuring achievement within its own educational framework.<\/span><\/p>\n

Here’s how the performance levels break down by subject:<\/span><\/p>\n

English Language Arts<\/b><\/h3>\n