lewber Posted September 26, 2015 Share Posted September 26, 2015 DS13 would like to try to qualify for CTY or Duke TIP. He is interested in summer camps. He tests well in math, especially spatial, block building, puzzles, etc. I don't think he'll qualify in language arts. He also has a slow processing speed. His WISC was only 50 %, but enough standard deviations from his high that his total score was not valid. However, they accepted him into the school gifted program so there was no reason to test any further. So as a 7th grader he needs to take either SAT or ACT. Does either test hold an advantage for a mathy kid? Does either test allow more time? What kind of processing score allows for a special accommodation in test taking? Thanks for any help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lucy the Valiant Posted September 26, 2015 Share Posted September 26, 2015 The (current) SAT is more of a riddle / puzzle / logic type of test; the questions try to out-smart the kid. vs. The ACT is more of a plug-and-chug get-er-done type of test; the pacing is tight and often "out-runs" the kid. I don't know if that's useful or not, but - if you wanted to compare / contrast the two tests, there are books (even at the library, free) where you could compare real examples of the tests for your son. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted September 26, 2015 Share Posted September 26, 2015 Ask him to try the sample test from SAT and ACT under timed conditions. See which one he scores significantly better. The current SAT has a penalty for wrong answer, the ACT does not. SAT sample https://sat.collegeboard.org/SAT/public/pdf/getting-ready-for-the-sat.pdf ACT sample http://www.act.org/aap/pdf/Preparing-for-the-ACT.pdf In my boy's case, we choose to do ACT first because he would be annoyed by the SAT essay portion which would spoil his mood for the rest of the test as essay could be the first section of the SAT. He could do ACT without writing for talent search. ETA: My slower child flounder at the LA section of the practice tests for SAT and ACT but was able to finish most of math for both. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dmmetler Posted September 26, 2015 Share Posted September 26, 2015 We went the opposite route. DD is good at tricky stuff-games, puzzles, etc, and loves weird words and etymology. We figured that the SAT would be more "fun", so chose to do that first. The math also doesn't go as far in actual knowledge required. The other thing to look at is which is more accessible. For us, the ACT is available at dozens of test sites, on every possible test date. The SAT is more limited and only has a couple of sites and test dates. In some of the more rural areas in my region, it can be he case that there are no SAT sites without driving several hours. In other parts of the US, this may be reversed, which may make the decision for you. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewber Posted September 27, 2015 Author Share Posted September 27, 2015 Thank you all for the advice. Not sure why I didnt think of practice tests! We downloaded an app today and his pre score test was high enough in math, but not even close in critical reading. So that's a good start. We'll look for an ACT and see how that goes. And then move on from there. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEmama Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 Lewber, Do you mind sharing which app you used? Thanks! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 If your son has low processing speed, does he have accommodations at school (like extended time to take tests)? Is it possible that he will need accommodations on the ACT/SAT? If there is *any* possibility that he might apply for accommodations later on, it is extremely important that he *not* take either test under standard conditions before that happens. If he does, and he scores in the average range, even if the score is bad for him (for example, without accommodations he would score at the 50th percentile but with them it would be 99+), they will deny accommodations. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewber Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 If your son has low processing speed, does he have accommodations at school (like extended time to take tests)? Is it possible that he will need accommodations on the ACT/SAT? If there is *any* possibility that he might apply for accommodations later on, it is extremely important that he *not* take either test under standard conditions before that happens. If he does, and he scores in the average range, even if the score is bad for him (for example, without accommodations he would score at the 50th percentile but with them it would be 99+), they will deny accommodations. This is a good and helpful point. He is in public school and he has never had an official plan to need more time. Mostly because he is advanced enough that what they are doing he can manage in an allowed time. The official "state" testing the school does didn't have a cut off and the principal often had to come supervise him when everyone else finished and went to lunch. For the math field day qualifying test, they let him have two periods instead of one - and he had the highest score. In the actual county competition, he couldn't finish the test but still managed to tie for 3rd because he got all the ones right he finished. So, it hasn't been a pressing issue until this point and we've just been trying to get him to work faster. I think it's more of an over analyzing issue from what he tells me. How would I go about getting an accommodation - or deciding if he needs one? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lewber Posted October 1, 2015 Author Share Posted October 1, 2015 Lewber, Do you mind sharing which app you used? Thanks! He's using SAT UP - it was free in the Itunes App store. I;m not sure how accurate the pre-test was because there were so few questions. It seems new, so there weren't a lot of reviews. But they give you 10 - 20 minute practice session free every day. He can see his results right away and review all the ones he missed. Then they email me his results where I can see all the same things. All the questions show the correct answer and the explanation. There are lots of invitations :lol: to buy the premium plan or tutoring, but we haven't seen the need for any of that - the daily practice is enough at this stage. We've found a few repeating concepts he's having trouble with so I looked those up on Khan Academy for another or more thorough explanation. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MEmama Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 He's using SAT UP - it was free in the Itunes App store. I;m not sure how accurate the pre-test was because there were so few questions. It seems new, so there weren't a lot of reviews. But they give you 10 - 20 minute practice session free every day. He can see his results right away and review all the ones he missed. Then they email me his results where I can see all the same things. All the questions show the correct answer and the explanation. There are lots of invitations :lol: to buy the premium plan or tutoring, but we haven't seen the need for any of that - the daily practice is enough at this stage. We've found a few repeating concepts he's having trouble with so I looked those up on Khan Academy for another or more thorough explanation. That's very helpful--thank you! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted October 1, 2015 Share Posted October 1, 2015 How would I go about getting an accommodation - or deciding if he needs one? I would start by taking reports of any previous testing that show low processing speed to the school to support his getting a 504 plan for extended time for tests. Then he will need to use that accommodation regularly from here on because the College Board and ACT people want to see that the accommodations being requested are actually used by the student in school. When you go to request accommodations for the SAT/ACT, I'm pretty sure that the school counselor does the paperwork (as a homeschooler, I did it myself). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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