Motlow’s Belinda Champion introduces At-Home College Aptitude Testing

LYNCHBURG, TN (May 13, 2020) – Motlow State placement testing leader, Belinda Champion, has leaned into the ongoing pandemic environment to champion the launch of at-home college placement testing.

The testing services team at Motlow announced this week that aspiring college students can now take the ACCUPLACER test in the privacy and safety of their own homes. Motlow also offers a no-placement test pathway to starting college.

The ACCUPLACER test is a computer testing system that helps determine student academic readiness in reading, sentence skills, and mathematics for college-level work. Test results determine which courses are best suited to the student’s level of preparedness.

For some, college achievement tests like the ACT or SAT can be a psychological barrier to college-going ambitions. Poor achievement scores often demoralize students and derail college dreams. Champion, Director of Disability, Testing, and Counseling Services at Motlow, insists that this is unnecessary.

“Tennessee is a college-enabling state,” said Champion. “We are national leaders in ensuring access to college for everyone. We have already tackled the barriers associated with the cost of college through free-tuition scholarships like TNPromise for high schoolers, and TNReconnect for adult students. Now we are tackling the barriers associated with college entrance tests.”

Motlow has always offered alternatives to traditional college placement testing. Its options include making placement testing available in comfortable spaces on a variety of local campuses, hosted by welcoming and understanding staff. Now, Motlow can facilitate that same placement testing support to prospective students in the comfort of their own home.

“This announcement is huge,” added Champion. “I’m proud of the work my team has achieved. There is no doubt that at-home placement testing will changes lives. It will make college-going more accessible.”

Questions about the value of college achievement tests such as the ACT and SAT have moved a growing number of colleges to adopt test-optional practices. Motlow has developed a flexible approach to testing.

Motlow accepts achievement test results such as the ACT and SAT. As an alternative to those measures, it also offers placement testing using the Accuplacer, a tool to help college advisors match course planning to a student’s skills and ambitions.

According to Champion, “If students have prior test scores they don’t like, we say, ‘remember that score is a measure of your performance on that day and is not a measure of your potential for the future. We are here to help you chart your future; not measure your past.’

“There are a lot of reasons why people might have poor placement scores or even no placement scores. I work with a lot of students that have taken achievement tests under very challenging circumstances,” continued Champion. “My staff are experts at helping students rewrite their college placement testing story.”

According to Champion, low or no placement test scores can be an issue for a variety of reasons:

·         A student might not feel well the day of a high-stakes placement test like the ACT, or SAT. Poor physical health can compromise cognitive performance.

·         Some students may not have had the benefit of practice tests that give them an idea of the length and demands of achievement tests. Test shock and test fatigue can play a considerable role in test outcomes.

·         Test anxiety can be a significant factor. Nerves can undermine test performance.

·         Poor sleep, missing breakfast, relationship issues, travel snafus, taking the test in an unknown place, even just feeling alone about the process can take a toll on test results.

“Achievement testing is used to get into college. Placement testing is more focused on getting students into the right classes. We want students to take the right course at the right time. Placement planning allows us to meet a student where they are now, and develop a curriculum plan that supports them through to their ultimate goal. “

For the next available test dates and registration, please visit the Motlow State testing website at mscc.edu/testing or call 931-393-1763 or 1-800-654-4877 ext. 1763.

The last day to apply for Motlow’s Summer semester is May 18.

 Belinda Champion, Director of Disability, Testing and Counseling Services at Motlow

Control #: NR-EA-0012-2020.05.13

Motlow State Community College does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, creed, ethnicity or national origin, sex, disability, age status as a protected veteran or any other class protected by Federal or State laws and regulations and by Tennessee Board of Regents policies with respect to employment, programs, and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Barbara Scales bscales@mscc.edu, 5002 Motlow College Blvd. Smyrna, TN 37167, 615-220-7976.