Junie Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Well we just decided he shouldn't go, he's running a fever of 101, so that pretty much decides it. I did find 3 semi-local schools offering the exam on the 28th, so I will call around tomorrow and try to register him, and if that doesn't work he can do the alternate method. Thanks for helping me figure this out, and good luck to all the students taking the test tomorrow! Sorry that your ds is sick. (My ds is taking the test tomorrow and probably wishes he has a fever.) Hope your son is feeling better and does well on the test next week or in the spring. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cosmos Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Well we just decided he shouldn't go, he's running a fever of 101, so that pretty much decides it. I did find 3 semi-local schools offering the exam on the 28th, so I will call around tomorrow and try to register him, and if that doesn't work he can do the alternate method. Thanks for helping me figure this out, and good luck to all the students taking the test tomorrow! You definitely made the right decision. Not only would he be infecting others, but with a fever like that it is impossible to concentrate on a test. I hope you find another spot for him to take it. I dropped ds off this morning at 7:10. The test should be well underway by now, so I hope he found the right place to go. He left his phone at home as recommended, so he's just going to walk home when he's done. I guess I'll see him around 11? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homeschoolmom3 Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Dropped mine off at 7:30, it is hard to see so many police cars, security, etc. Can't help but stress about him being at a public school with so much violence lately....having chest pains this morning! :-( I know you have to let them go and have faith, but it sure is hard these days! Praying hard for all of the kids today that they can concentrate and for their safety! I believe it is a little longer test almost 3 hrs. and with breaks they might not be done until 11:30. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stephinsocal Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Good luck, everyone! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Mine had to be there by 7:15, it was about 7:05 when I dropped him off. Crazy to see so many teens, I'm used to groups with more of an age span. Not to mention I'm not used to having to wake up my littles...they always sleep until they naturally wake up. I had to bribe them with donuts, lol. Oh, and the teen went to bed early, at 9pm. Which would be great, but then he got up at 4am! I thought he was doing it to get his schoolwork done that he didn't do yesterday. Nope, he just wanted to watch TV and have time to relax before the test. But 4am? Not to mention, he never did turn in his work from yesterday. Grr. I didn't give him grief because I didn't want to argue before he took the PSAT. He probably knew that, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeanM Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 They're starting late here because school starts late on Wednesdays so they haven't started yet. DS left at 8 am, but I think he said the test is starting at 8:40. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ktgrok Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 They're starting late here because school starts late on Wednesdays so they haven't started yet. DS left at 8 am, but I think he said the test is starting at 8:40. They get out early on Wednesdays here. Starting late would be so much better! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I remembered to give dd a watch this year :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkT Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Anyone have any idea how critical a calculator will be on the calculator-allowed math section? Is it critical for doing certain problems? Or is it mostly to save time? I haven't encouraged my oldest to use calculators. They've used & are familiar enough with the relatively uncomplicated TI-30Xa. However, that one is not on the list of PSAT-approved calculators. Last year, I bought them fancy TI Inspire calculators (which are approved) for a class, but they ended up not using them at all. The TI Inspires are so complicated that they might be more of an obstacle than a help at this point. Do you think they could use the simpler TI-30's or are the test sites absolute sticklers about only calculators from the approved list? I did not see any questions where you really needed a graphing calculator. A regular calculator will save time - especially for "calculator kids" like my son. They really only disapprove certain calculators. The fact that they allow CAS enabled calculators kind of strikes me as odd. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bristayl Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 We had a few glitches this morning at the private school where dd is taking the test. They didn't have her name on the list even though I had received the confirmation email and my check had been cashed. They said it was fine for her to take it anyway because they had enough copies. Then they assigned her to the room for the PSAT 8/9 because she is in 9th grade. But I had registered her for the the regular PSAT. So then they let her go to the room with the 11th graders who were taking the full PSAT. They were very nice and gracious and I was glad they let her go ahead and take it. I hope dd wasn't too rattled by the glitches! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erica in OR Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I remembered to give dd a watch this year :D We actually went and purchased a watch for it yesterday. :) The only one in the house with a functioning watch is my husband. I typically check time on my cell phone. Erica in OR Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkT Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 We actually went and purchased a watch for it yesterday. :) The only one in the house with a functioning watch is my husband. I typically check time on my cell phone. Erica in OR I assume that the proctor calls out a few time remainings. DS doesn't like watches. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I assume that the proctor calls out a few time remainings. DS doesn't like watches. D likes to pace herself (she learned that taking AMCs). She puts the watch on the desk or table in front of her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 We actually went and purchased a watch for it yesterday. :) The only one in the house with a functioning watch is my husband. I typically check time on my cell phone. Erica in OR I warn my students to not go buy a watch the day before. I often find that watches come with pre-set alarms that will go off at inappropriate times and that the new owner doesn't know how to turn off. It does not go over well in testing centers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erica in OR Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I assume that the proctor calls out a few time remainings. DS doesn't like watches. The test administrator guide we saw online says they give them two time remainings, one mid-way through and one with five minutes remaining. My DD was interested in having the option to know more often, without having to depend on whatever clock was (or wasn't) in the room. Erica in OR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Erica in OR Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I warn my students to not go buy a watch the day before. I often find that watches come with pre-set alarms that will go off at inappropriate times and that the new owner doesn't know how to turn off. It does not go over well in testing centers. It's a fashion watch from Kmart. No alarm at all, so should be okay. :) Erica in OR 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoJosMom Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Dropped mine off at 7:30, it is hard to see so many police cars, security, etc. Can't help but stress about him being at a public school with so much violence lately....having chest pains this morning! :-( I know you have to let them go and have faith, but it sure is hard these days! Praying hard for all of the kids today that they can concentrate and for their safety! I believe it is a little longer test almost 3 hrs. and with breaks they might not be done until 11:30. Poor you! That's awful. Sending warm wishes your way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 It's a fashion watch from Kmart. No alarm at all, so should be okay. :) Erica in OR Ahhh .... we have bought a couple of cheap digital watches at Walmart. Both had the annoying alarms preset. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I just got a text from a parent of a student I have tutored in math. She says her daughter just got home from taking the PSAT and that the teacher in the testing classroom told them it was the "Common Core" version of the PSAT. I have never heard it referenced that way before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I just got a text from a parent of a student I have tutored in math. She says her daughter just got home from taking the PSAT and that the teacher in the testing classroom told them it was the "Common Core" version of the PSAT. I have never heard it referenced that way before. :rolleyes: 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wapiti Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 I just got a text from a parent of a student I have tutored in math. She says her daughter just got home from taking the PSAT and that the teacher in the testing classroom told them it was the "Common Core" version of the PSAT. I have never heard it referenced that way before. Ick. However, it's correct that the new PSAT and SAT are supposedly aligned to the Common Core standards per the College Board http://media.collegeboard.com/digitalServices/pdf/lpsite/common-core-brochure.pdf Recent alignment studies confirm that all of the knowledge and skills measured by ReadiStep, the PSAT/NMSQT and the SAT strongly align to the Common Core State Standards. These assessments can serve as a valuable tool in helping states measure college readiness. To view the full alignment, visit www.collegeboard.org/commoncore. (except, that link www.collegeboard.org/commoncore doesn't work - "access denied") Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chanley Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 My daughter said the math portion of the test was much harder than before. She is not certain if it is because she is taking Geometry this year and her Algebra skills are rusty or if the actual Algebra is just more difficult. We will see when scores come out in December? She felt pretty confident about the Language Arts sections. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Homeschoolmom3 Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Well, my ds said that math was harder than last year and format a bit different....he thought he was done and he missed a section...whoops! He has already take Alg1, Alg 2 and Geometry to compare. Anyway, I can understand the common core because he said some sections he wasnt sure on because he hasnt done in years. I am glad he took it for a practice, and even though there were a few glitches in the process it was a needed learning experience! :) Hope everyone else faired well! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bristayl Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Dd said she thought the reading and writing sections were a little more difficult than the practice test, but the math sections were a little bit easier than the practice test. This is her first time taking it so she can't compare it to the previous PSAT. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yvonne Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 My boys thought the math sections were harder than on the practice test. They didn't have time for the last four or five problems, so they just bubbled in random answers.I'm glad this was only practice, but I'd hoped for fairly decent scores to up their confidence. This might be better, though, because they'll be motivated to prep before next year's test or at least try more practice tests w/ a timer so they learn to pace themselves better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luckymama Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 D thought the questions had tricky wording so that one could easily make a mistake without close reading. She said the two language sections were easy. She was disappointed in the lack of geometry problems, one of her strong points. First words out of her mouth were complaints about percentage problems :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeanM Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 My ds also thought the math was easier than the practice math test. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LinRTX Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 My daughter said the math was harder than last year. I was disturbed that the school where she took it had five minute breaks, but would only allow one person at a time to go to the restroom. She was the third to get the pass and by the time she got back the next section of the test had already been started! Thankfully next year is the real deal and this is just practice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cosmos Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 My daughter said the math was harder than last year. I was disturbed that the school where she took it had five minute breaks, but would only allow one person at a time to go to the restroom. She was the third to get the pass and by the time she got back the next section of the test had already been started! Thankfully next year is the real deal and this is just practice. What?? That's outrageous! Ds was annoyed because he didn't pace well on the first section (reading, I guess?) and wasn't able to finish the last few questions. The rest seemed to go fine. We went out for lunch afterward. Glad that is over for this year! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goldberry Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 My ds also thought the math was easier than the practice math test. My DD said this too. They didn't give them scratch paper and didn't tell them it was okay to write in the test booklet. So DD wrote very lightly in the test booklet and then erased it. I have no idea how she managed to do that and still finish, she has time issues with testing. This is mostly just SAT practice so I didn't discuss it much with her beforehand, but kind of wish I had. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yvonne Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 When do results come out? And are they only delivered via snail mail? And you only get back results, not the actual test questions & answers, right?Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bristayl Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Here is what the College Board website says: "The College Board will email you an access code to view your online score report about two months after you take the test. Teachers and counselors will see scores about a day before you do and can give you the access code if you didn’t provide an email address when you took the test. Teachers and counselors will also give you your paper score report." I thought I remembered hearing that in the past, the student would receive their actual test booklet back. The website doesn't say anything about this. Or maybe I'm remembering incorrectly. Does anyone know if they will receive their test booklets back? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 My boys thought the math sections were harder than on the practice test. They didn't have time for the last four or five problems, so they just bubbled in random answers. I'm glad this was only practice, but I'd hoped for fairly decent scores to up their confidence. This might be better, though, because they'll be motivated to prep before next year's test or at least try more practice tests w/ a timer so they learn to pace themselves better. If you're going to wildly guess -- you haven't eliminated any wrong answers -- it is statistically better to choose an "answer of the day" and stick with that, rather than jump around. So, on the way to the test, make up your mind that, let's say "B" will be your answer of the day. Any time you have no clue what the answer is, choose B and go on. From what I'm hearing around here, lots of students, including at the expensive private schools, didn't even take the practice test. So those who did any preparation at all may be slightly ahead of the game. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 D thought the questions had tricky wording so that one could easily make a mistake without close reading. She said the two language sections were easy. She was disappointed in the lack of geometry problems, one of her strong points. First words out of her mouth were complaints about percentage problems :lol: On the old PSAT / SAT, Geometry was around 25% to 30% of the test. On the new version, there will be at most two Geometry questions. Crazy, huh? But there will be questions about standard deviation, confidence intervals, and other statistical data that I don't think most high school juniors have ever been exposed to. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 My DD said this too. They didn't give them scratch paper and didn't tell them it was okay to write in the test booklet. So DD wrote very lightly in the test booklet and then erased it. I have no idea how she managed to do that and still finish, she has time issues with testing. This is mostly just SAT practice so I didn't discuss it much with her beforehand, but kind of wish I had. The instructions in each of the math sections say this: "You may use any available space in your test booklet for scratch work." Didn't she notice that other students were writing in their test booklets? This is one reason why I highly recommend that students do some prep work before going to take these tests. You also don't want them taking time to decipher the rules for the grid-in (non-multiple choice) questions in the middle of taking the test. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 14, 2015 Share Posted October 14, 2015 Here is what the College Board website says: "The College Board will email you an access code to view your online score report about two months after you take the test. Teachers and counselors will see scores about a day before you do and can give you the access code if you didn’t provide an email address when you took the test. Teachers and counselors will also give you your paper score report." I thought I remembered hearing that in the past, the student would receive their actual test booklet back. The website doesn't say anything about this. Or maybe I'm remembering incorrectly. Does anyone know if they will receive their test booklets back? It used to be that you got a copy of the test book, but you didn't get your exact copy (the one that you did your scratch work on). But you could see the questions and answer choices, and your score report would show what you answered for each question as well as what the correct answer is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted October 15, 2015 Share Posted October 15, 2015 My DS thought the math was easier than last year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkT Posted October 15, 2015 Share Posted October 15, 2015 My DS thought the math was easier than the practice test and last year's PSAT. But the school cut a few minutes off of the allotted time for no calculator math so he had to finish quickly??. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
goldberry Posted October 15, 2015 Share Posted October 15, 2015 The instructions in each of the math sections say this: "You may use any available space in your test booklet for scratch work." Didn't she notice that other students were writing in their test booklets? It would not surprise me in the least that she just didn't see it. She's like that. Takes after her Dad... ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie in Life Posted October 15, 2015 Share Posted October 15, 2015 I walked my two girls into their testing site at 7:45 am, confirmed some details with the proctor, and left. They were to begin at 8 am. They weren't released until after 12 noon. My kids said that it took almost an hour just for everyone to finish filling out the informational stuff. Both my kids thought today's test was comparable to that in the PSAT booklet. They said there was some tricky wording. When it came to Math, one dd said the "no calculator" section was harder, while the other dd said it was the "calculator" portion that required her to really fly. Both used a watch but said they can still improve on their pacing for next year's exam. Our proctor said she'd mail us the girls' test booklets after she sends in all answer sheets. The hosting high school had actually moved the test to a nearby church to avoid school-related disruptions in the testing, like end-of-class bells, etc. However, the testers endured the last five minutes of "math with a calculator" with the church's scheduled mid-day bell tower ringing/musical hymn playing. I heard it while waiting in the parking lot. When I asked my kids about it, they told me they did their best to tune it out. I also learned at pick up that one dd actually took the test, sick. She woke up this morning with a sore throat and congestion, but didn't want to tell me. I had noticed she looked tired at breakfast and was pretty quiet on the ride over to the test site, but I'd chalked it up to her just being in "test mode". I'll be working on my "observant mom" skills for the next go-round. In the meantime, we'll be waiting to see how this "practice" attempt plays out for both of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bambam Posted October 15, 2015 Share Posted October 15, 2015 My 9th grader took the test this morning at a local private. Dropped her off at 8, and they didn't get out till 12:20. ???? They only got two 5 minute breaks. Turns out 30 minutes of the morning was wasted because five students at this private school did not know their home address, so the school had to go pull that info for them so they could fill it out. Um, really? She thought the math was easier than the practice test. Another student thought the math was harder. Maybe there were several different test booklets? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MyThreeSons Posted October 15, 2015 Share Posted October 15, 2015 It would not surprise me in the least that she just didn't see it. She's like that. Takes after her Dad... ;) I thought the proctor was supposed to read those directions out loud, but maybe not. I tutored a student a few years ago who also missed the fact that he could write in the test booklet. He did all of his SAT math without writing down anything other than bubbling in the answers. He scored something like 560 as a sophomore under those conditions. I never heard back what score he got after some tutoring. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plansrme Posted October 15, 2015 Share Posted October 15, 2015 Thanks, I checked and it says to mail or fax a letter to them if a student misses due to illness. Does anyone have an experience with this - what are the alternate means of entry? I'm not sure what to do... I could also look for a school giving it on the 28th, but not sure if I could register him this late. I guess I will see how he feels in the morning. If you can't get him in on the 28th, don't sweat--seriously. The procedure is to take the SAT and have the SAT score substituted for the PSAT score. With the new PSAT score conversion for NM purposes, I don't know exactly how that will work, but "back in the day," which is to say, 1983, you dropped the final digit of the SAT, so a 2340 SAT converted to and was treated as a 234 PSAT for NM cut-off purposes. I know this because this is how I qualified for a NM scholarship that, at the time, paid for almost half of my undergraduate education. We had never even heard of the NM program or the PSAT until after October of my junior hear. My podunk high school was zero help, but my mom got on the phone and called GCs at all of the other local schools who all told her "tough luck," but one finally gave her the number of the NMSC. The NMSC told her about the SAT substitution option. I've seen references to it since then, so it sounds like the procedure is still pretty much the same. As others have noted, it works only if you did not take the PSAT. You have a time limit to take the SAT but, as I recall, it is fairly generous. If you make semi-finalist, you still have to take the SAT again to qualify as a finalist. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Butter Posted October 15, 2015 Share Posted October 15, 2015 My daughter pees only 2-3 times a day. She has always had a huge bladder. It's not uncommon for her to wake up, pee, and then not pee again until bedtime. I don't get it, but it's the way she's always been. At one point, one of the proctors actually came over to her during a break and told her she really should use the bathroom. My daughter insisted she really was fine and did not need to go. The two women administering the test were *very* concerned about her lack of needing to use the restroom! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cosmos Posted October 15, 2015 Share Posted October 15, 2015 My daughter pees only 2-3 times a day. She has always had a huge bladder. It's not uncommon for her to wake up, pee, and then not pee again until bedtime. I don't get it, but it's the way she's always been. At one point, one of the proctors actually came over to her during a break and told her she really should use the bathroom. My daughter insisted she really was fine and did not need to go. The two women administering the test were *very* concerned about her lack of needing to use the restroom! That's weird. These are teenagers, not kindergartners! I do think it's appalling that some students were not given adequate access to use the bathroom during the test, as somebody described above. But someone not needing to use the bathroom would not surprise me at all. It's only a three hour test. For many people, that's not a long stretch at all. I doubt my ds used the bathroom during his breaks either. I, on the other hand, would definitely need to! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chanley Posted October 15, 2015 Share Posted October 15, 2015 I agree! My daughter is an athlete who drinks at least a gallon of water a day. Hydration is a big thing for her and bathroom breaks are necessary when you drink that much water. She felt confident till she was done with the test. Then she was unsure. I reminded her that this is a practice for us and it was a new test for everyone. So these scores are not as important as they would be if she were a junior. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anne1456 Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 Well I found a school that will let my son take the PSAT on the 28th. It is 45 minutes away, but he says he'd rather do that and get it over with with than wait to see which SAT they want him to take and study all over again. Glad to hear the test was comparable to the practice test, it sounds like it went about like everyone expected. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkT Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 Well I found a school that will let my son take the PSAT on the 28th. It is 45 minutes away, but he says he'd rather do that and get it over with with than wait to see which SAT they want him to take and study all over again. Glad to hear the test was comparable to the practice test, it sounds like it went about like everyone expected. Does anyone know if the second PSAT is the exact same test as the first test? If so then a photographic memory person could help a friend "cheat" to get a scholarship. Yeah a little far-fetched. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sebastian (a lady) Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 Does anyone know if the second PSAT is the exact same test as the first test? If so then a photographic memory person could help a friend "cheat" to get a scholarship. Yeah a little far-fetched. I would very much doubt it is the same form. There have been significant cheating issues over the last few years and CB is aware of the fact that people will try if they think they can get away with it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaKinVA Posted October 16, 2015 Share Posted October 16, 2015 My son took this on Wednesday. He felt the CR was easy, and the math harder than the ACT, but not impossible. He was unable to finish 2 grid in questions. The problems were more complicated. It sounds like ds will need to take statistics this summer as part of his preparations. He thinks he did well, but was sad there were only 2-3 Geometry questions. He's currently taking precalculus, but did some trig last year in physics. None of his friends liked the PSAT format at all. He's a 10th grader this year. Dd in 8th wasn't allowed to take it at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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