The last time students can use paper and pencil to take the Test of Academic Proficiency also known as the Basic Skills Test will be April 14.

The test will not be offered at Eastern and students will have to go to a testing center. The nearest testing center is at the Pearson VUE in Terra Haute, Ind.

After the April 14 test date, students will have to make an appointment to take it on a computer at any testing center, Monday-Saturday. The computerized test will have more questions than the older versions. Stephen Lucas, chair of the department of secondary education and foundations, said the increased number of questions will allow the testing company to give better feedback to students about what they are doing wrong.

“The students can now take it wherever they want, a student from Chicago can take it at a Chicago testing center,” said Lucas. “It is going to be a change; it is now the students’ responsibility to schedule it, we cannot just remind them when the test date is.”

The changes come as statewide pass rates including Eastern’s remain at roughly 33 percent even after Eastern’s preparation push. “It has to be very confusing and disheartening for students, they feel like they are a moving target,” Lucas said. “We’re even seeing a decrease in our enrollment even in the introduction classes, students are hearing it is impossible to become a teacher and don’t even join the program.”

The new changes will allow students to take the test an additional five times even if they have already taken the paper and pencil test five times. Janet Carpenter, the director of the reading center, said the reading center is continuing with the same preparation program they have offered all semester.

“It is probably a good thing most of our preparation resources are online, students are becoming more adapt to technology which could help them taking the test,” Carpenter said. Lucas said he and his department are hoping when the Illinois Board of Higher Education meets in March they will consider lowering what scores count as passing.

“The test is very reliable and the scores confirms our beliefs the passing scores are unreasonable,” Lucas said. “We have students here who we think would make fantastic teachers, but because of this they are shut out.” Carpenter said when students take the time to prepare, she believes they can pass.

“I think for those who take the time to understand where there problems, those are the students who are going to pass,” she said.

The reading center offers different workshops each week, times and dates of which are available at their website. In addition to all the changes, the test will now cost $170 dollars and for $79 per subtests if students do not need to take the whole test.

Amy Wywialowski can be reached 581-2812 or [email protected].