The Ohio EMPT Program

has been terminated.

The last day of existence

will be June 30, 2010.

Please Click here

for more information.

Welcome to the Ohio EMPT Program web site. The Ohio Early College Mathematics Placement Testing Program is a high school mathematics intervention program designed to help high school students make decisions about taking mathematics courses while still in high school.

The Ohio EMPT Program tests are administered to high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors to give them an indication of where they stand in terms of mathematics knowledge. The premise is that after receiving their results and placement level, students will talk to a counselor and/or math teacher for advice on what is the best math class to schedule for the next term and/or school year to ensure that students are prepared for mathematics courses beginning their first year of college. Typically, the need for remedial mathematics courses will be eliminated or diminished, thus, cutting the cost of college tuition for students (and parents), and saving money for state-supported colleges and universities Further, no extra time will be added to students' college matriculation.

The tests are a guideline for individual students. Test results are not placed in a student's permanent record and the tests are not a local, state, or federal requirement. Also, the tests are not used for admission requirements to colleges or universities and are not used in place of ACT and/or SAT scores.

The tests are similar to mathematics placement tests offered at large 4-year state-supported universities in Ohio. They give students a good indication of where they stand in terms of mathematics placement if they were to enter college on that day, yet it leaves the student with their remaining time in high school to correct any deficiencies before college (if deficiencies exist). The EMPT tests are available as pencil and paper or online.

Below is the list of Ohio colleges and universities (with contact names) currently participating in the Ohio EMPT Program.

*Still being worked on*

http://www-dev4.math.ohio-state.edu/participating_colleges

Thanks to continued support from the Ohio Board of Regents and the State of Ohio, high schools will have the opportunity to allow their students to participate in the Ohio EMPT Program. The program is free of charge to high schools as well as students.

In February, 1978, Albert Adcock from Westland High School and Bert Waits from the Mathematics Department of The Ohio State University initiated an experimental Early Mathematics Placement Testing (EMPT) program at Westland High School. The basic objective was to address the issue of remediation at the college level. It was hoped that if high school juniors were informed about their mathematics skills (in terms of Ohio State placement levels) and if they understood the negative consequences of needing remedial math courses in college, then they would schedule appropriate college preparatory mathematics courses in their senior year. Indeed, Westland High School realized a 73% increase in senior mathematics enrollments the following year as a direct result of the early testing.

We also hoped that Westland students attending OSU in Autumn of '79 would have higher mathematics placement scores and would need to take fewer remedial courses at OSU. Our hopes were realized and the program grew from 7 high schools in the 1978-79 school year to 232 high schools in 1982-83, and then expanded to approximately 500 Ohio high schools yearly since the 1983-84 academic year. There are now 12 other states that have followed Dr. Waits' lead and a total of 29 states that are testing or considering testing.

Each high school student tested receives a personalized report of his or her performance together with a list of mathematics courses required for their intended major and an indication of what remedial courses, if any, would be required if mathematics skills remain at the tested level. Students are able to request course information in terms of the curriculum at any of the participating Ohio colleges and universities.