Florida Schools Open to Assessment Alternative to SAT and ACT

Some state colleges and universities already accept the Classic Learning Test exam

An English class in Mesa, Ariz., on Oct. 18, 2022. Matt York/AP

As students return to the classroom, the college-bound soon could have a new assessment option if they wish to remain in Florida for their higher education—the CLT, also known as the Classic Learning Test.

The CLT was founded in 2015 as an alternative to the long-established SAT, and ACT [American College Testing] exams. SAT originally stood for Scholastic Aptitude Test, but as the test evolved the full wording was dropped in favor of the acronym, according to the administrating College Board.

The exam first found favor with homeschoolers and co-op groups, as well as Christian private and charter schools.

And in May it was recognized by Florida’s government to be a suitable alternative to the two legacy standardized tests for both admissions and scholarship opportunities.

Now, the State University System of Florida’s Board of Governors will decide whether or not to approve the CLT during its next meeting on Aug. 30.

If approved, the vote will amend the board’s regulations concerning admission requirements for first-time college students.

Hillsborough County Public Schools, which oversees 65 of Florida’s high schools, told The Epoch Times that it is reviewing updates from the state Department of Education regarding the use of CLT as an additional option for Florida Bright Futures Scholarship programs.

But, neither the public nor private high schools The Epoch Times reached out to were able to comment further on the exam.

Meanwhile, the CLT organization says more than 250 colleges and universities across the United States already accept its exam scores in their application processes. And 25 of those are in Florida, including well-known private institutions such as Ave Maria University and New College of Florida.

“With the growing popularity of the CLT among Florida homeschoolers and classically educated students, we believe this is an exciting step for educational choice and freedom in our state,” said New College interim president Richard Corcoran.

Some state schools, including  Florida State University (FSU) and University of South Florida (USF), were also listed as what it calls “partner colleges and universities.”

However, USF’s admission office denied that the CLT exam was currently accepted as an alternative to the SAT or ACT.

Representatives at FSU’s admissions office confirmed with The Epoch Times that the school was waiting on direction from the Board of Governors before accepting the exam scores.

FSU’s website currently notifies its visitors that the exam is being considered as a third option by the Board of Governors.

Return to ‘Classic Learning’

“The ‘classic’ in Classic Learning Test refers to its use of the greatest and most enduring texts that have informed and shaped society,” according to the organization’s website.

“Although these texts are featured prominently in a classical education, CLT exams instead emphasize intellectual aptitude and achievement which is not limited to classical curricula.”

“The SAT and ACT are both common core aligned assessments, and they’re their ideological companies,” CEO Jeremy Tate told The Epoch Times.

“They draw heavily from a very, very narrow group of thinkers—a lot of just 20th-century progressives. And they really censor the entire Christian-Catholic-Western intellectual tradition.”

The test’s leadership consists of an 87-person board that includes CEOs, COOs, presidents, and professors from institutes and prestigious schools—such as Notre Dame University, Harvard University, Princeton University, and the Catholic University of America.

Many of those professors teach philosophy, theology, political science, and other humanities.

Lockers at Sunny Hills High School in Fullerton, Calif., on Aug. 11, 2023. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

“CLT has never said that every kid has to be Christian,” Mr. Tate said. “But can you really be educated if you’ve never even been exposed to St. Augustine or Thomas Aquinas? We would argue, ‘Absolutely not.’ These are some of the most influential thinkers.”

“These tests ultimately end up kind of driving and dictating what happens in the classroom. And so, if students are going to encounter Aristotle on a really important test, you’re more likely to see Aristotle in the classroom as well. That’s the goal.”

The CLT also clarifies, though, that it lacks a science section like the ACT. And Mr. Tate said it offers different but equal math sections.

Along with differing content, the Classic Learning Test also states it is shorter and less expensive than the SAT and ACT.

Its admissions test lasts around two hours compared to the ACT’s two hours and 55 minutes and the SAT’s three hours.

And while it is not that much cheaper than its competitors—$59 compared to the SAT’s $60 and ACT’s $68 ($95 with the writing portion)—it does not charge additional registration fees, score fees, or international transfer fees. It also does not charge its test takers to send their scores to prospective schools.

The CLT can also be taken online, with the exception of its optional written portion, while all SAT and ACT exams must be taken in person.

All remotely proctored exams record the student’s video, computer screen, audio, and keystrokes during the exam and will be reviewed afterwards. If any rules are broken, students will not receive their scores.

Outside of Florida, this third exam option is already recognized by private schools in several U.S. states and two Canadian provinces (Alberta and British Columbia).

Those colleges and universities include the University of New Mexico, Franciscan University, and Oral Roberts University. Baylor University also accepts the CLT exam, but only for homeschooled students.

But Florida would be the first state to recognize CLT as a suitable SAT alternative for all higher learning in the public sector.

“CLT is an acceptable test for about 20 states, as I understand, for satisfying things like homeschool testing requirements and that sort of thing,” Mr. Tate said. “But this is a very different kind of level.”

The college entrance exam takes center stage, but Mr. Tate told The Epoch Times that it only accounts for 20-25 percent of CLT’s test takers.

The vast majority of participants, he said, are the private schools, charter schools, homeschoolers, and co-op groups utilizing CLT’s lower-level assessment tests to establish an objective way of tracking students’ progress year to year.

Assessments are available for education band levels such as grades 3–6, grades 7–8, and grades 9–10.

“If you’re homeschooling, often a parent is wondering how are you how are we really doing,” he said. “They’re kind of looking for something that’s objective that also reflects the kind of things that they care about in terms of education.”

Meeting ‘Industry Standards’

Taking effect on July 1, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed HB1537 into law, recognizing CLT as an equal alternative to SAT and ACT for college admissions and its statewide scholarship programs.

The CLT scores range from 0 to 120, compared to the SAT’s 400 to 1600 and the ACT’s 1 to 36.

Florida Bright Futures states that students applying for the Florida Academic Scholarship (FAS) will need at least a 29 on their ACT, 1340 on their SAT, or a 96 on their CLT.

Meanwhile, the Florida Medallion Scholarship (FMS) requires at least a 25 ACT score, a 1210 SAT score, or an 84 CLT score.

The Department of Education reserves the authority to alter the scores so that all FAS recipients test at or above the 89th national percentile of SAT scores and all FMS recipients’ test scores remained at or above the 75th national percentile.

FAS provides $212 per enrolled credit hour per semester for students attending a four-year institution, while FMS provides $159 per enrolled credit hour per semester.

SAT test preparation books sit on a shelf at a Barnes and Noble store in New York on June 27, 2002. Mario Tama/Getty Images

The bill states that it is the responsibility of the Department of Education to maintain equivalent scores.

But the College Board, which owns the SAT exam, protested against Tallahassee’s recognition of the Classic Learning Test.

It released an official statement in July, claiming the recent study conducted by CLT to determine concurrency to the SAT did not meet the “industry standards” developed by the American Education Research Association, National Council on Measurement in Education, and the American Psychological Association.

The College Board also said in its statement that it was not involved at all in the study, and the group of students used in the study was insufficient.

However, it recognized the CLT’s potential and expressed the desire to have the opportunity to work with both the CLT and ACT to conduct what its leaders argue to be a “valid concordance study.”

A University of Miami graduation ceremony in Coral Gables, Fla. on May 13, 2022. T.J. Muscaro/The Epoch Times

Mr. Tate spoke on CLT’s relationship with the College Board with The Epoch Times, saying that while those responsible for the ACT have been “fantastic” and “easy to work with,” the College Board has been “very difficult.”

“At the end of the day, they don’t want the competition,” he said. “They want to try and make the case unless you have as many data points as they do—we don’t, we’re much younger than them—you can’t possibly be valid.”

“But we have done things the right way. We’ve got rock-solid data, and they’re trying to undermine us on the data front, and I don’t think people are buying it.”

The College Board’s protest against a competing standardized test comes alongside its opposition to the decision made by the Florida Department of Education to alter its AP Psychology class to restrict sections instructing on sexual identity and gender identity.

“To be clear, any AP psychology course taught in Florida will violate either Florida law or college requirements,” the College Board said on Aug. 3.

“Therefore, we advise Florida districts not to offer AP psychology until Florida reverses their decision and allows parents and students to choose to take the full course.”

Test No Longer Needed?

While debate about test standards continues, several Florida colleges and universities no longer require applicants to send in their SAT or ACT scores. These schools include popular Florida institutions such as the University of Miami and Nova Southeastern University.

“Each applicant will be reviewed holistically,” the University of Miami announces in a video on its website, “which means we'll continue to assess each application by looking at their recalculated GPA and chosen curriculum within the context of their high school environment, their extracurricular activities, their essay responses, and their letter of recommendation.”

According to that university, “a student that chooses to submit test scores won’t be at an advantage over a student that chooses not to.”

And it will still evaluate all students for all merit-based scholarships regardless of SAT or ACT test scores.

Instead of submitting exam scores, would-be freshmen can submit a supplemental 250-word essay focused on “resilience.”

Students applying through the Fall 2025 admission cycle will be able to take advantage of Miami’s “test-optional” policy. Afterwards, the university plans to review the data and assess whether or not standardized tests will need to be considered.

Mr. Tate has also noticed this transition but believes that the trend will soon be turning back toward test-taking.

He argued that it was because some colleges have decided to remove what they have come to see as a “barrier to admissions” to combat a “serious enrollment crisis.”

But he said that he has seen schools transitioning back to standardized testing. He expects more schools to turn back in the years to come.

Catherine Yang contributed to this report.