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Barb.b
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| Posted: March 05 2014 at 2:50pm | IP Logged
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OH so mad because the new changes to SAT aren't until spring 2016 which is spring of dd senior year so TOO LATE! Look at the changes to SAT and its about time!
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/06/education/major-changes-in -sat-announced-by-college-board.html?_r=1
Barb
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guitarnan
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| Posted: March 05 2014 at 3:06pm | IP Logged
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I was just reading about this.
My DD will be taking the ACT, not the SAT. At least we have a choice.
(She is seriously thinking of going to community college,too, to save money, which would make her a transfer student...many, but not all, colleges don't look at standardized test scored on transfer applications.)
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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Kathryn
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| Posted: March 06 2014 at 10:31am | IP Logged
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Oh good! Maybe that'll trickle down into the schools and education system as a whole to stop expecting so much from these "standardized" tests.
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Kathryn in TX
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guitarnan
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| Posted: March 06 2014 at 10:38am | IP Logged
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I'm not sure that will happen. I think some of these changes are related to the fact that, starting in 2012, more students were taking the ACT than the SAT, for the first time ever.
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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Kathryn
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| Posted: March 06 2014 at 10:58am | IP Logged
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Well, that's a bummer. Granted, we live in TX and hs aren't required to submit to any standardized testing but I know plenty of schooled friends that would *LOVE* for standardized testing to GO AWAY!
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Kathryn in TX
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brabec7
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| Posted: March 06 2014 at 10:59am | IP Logged
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We are just starting to prep for the SAT. I have one who already went through this gauntlet of tests about five years ago. I appreciate the link that was posted. I am looking into the changes more to understand how the changes will work when an essay can be subjectively graded even with a matrix in place. My daughter received a perfect score on her essay for the ACT. However, the colleges told her that the essay is not considered since there is no way to standardize the score.? I also wonder how tests without a defined answer can be a fair measurement for those who may not have a high level of mastery of the English language or who have a language based disability? All questions that perhaps might negate the SAT for us. ACT was very friendly towards my oldest. Perhaps that is where we will focus our prep at the moment.
Any way just rambling... :)
Blessings,
Lisa
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Barb.b
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| Posted: March 06 2014 at 12:48pm | IP Logged
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Not sure about the new SAT essay. Seems kid will read a passage and write an essay citing details from that passage to back it up. Way easier I think then the current essay!
I agree with Lisa - my oldest did way better on the ACT. My current 10th grader will take SAT (current version no new - new one is too late for her). She will take it once this June, then MAYBE in fall. Then we will have her take the ACT at least 2 times!
Barb
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SeaStar
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| Posted: March 06 2014 at 1:16pm | IP Logged
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Barbara-
I hope you will keep us posted as to what she thought about the test- what was helpful for the prep, etc.
I find it interesting that - supposedly- with the new test all the expensive prep classes will no longer be necessary. Khan Academy will offer free prep lessons.
Khan has a lot of free stuff already on line.
Some colleges may require the essay; some won't. I wonder if the essay will eventually just be dropped.
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guitarnan
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| Posted: March 06 2014 at 1:39pm | IP Logged
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The grading for the essay is currently done by people, but I read an article that discussed essay grading software, currently in development, that might be used in the near future.
I know longer essays score higher, in general, all other things being equal.
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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brabec7
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| Posted: March 06 2014 at 5:29pm | IP Logged
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Again just thinking....
The timing is interesting to say the least. Core Curriculum
seems to be in line with the changes that are proposed. I can not help but question if this is not another manner by which to encorage the transformation of the system as it were. Something to think about when it comes to my younger get kids.
http://m.chronicle.com/article/With-Choice-of-New-Leader/131 901/
Blessings,
Lisa
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Martha
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| Posted: March 07 2014 at 10:18am | IP Logged
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guitarnan wrote:
| I'm not sure that will happen. I think some of these changes are related to the fact that, starting in 2012, more students were taking the ACT than the SAT, for the first time ever. |
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This. We never even bothered to look at the SAT. It just wasn't worth all the stress and hassle when every single school we looked at was just as happy with the ACT.
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Martha
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guitarnan
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| Posted: March 07 2014 at 10:30am | IP Logged
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The changes are definitely related to Common Core. The College Board CEO, David Coleman, used to work for Student Achievement Partners, one of the groups that played a big role in development of Common Core.
This article, while long, gives a good overview of the SAT, Mr. Coleman, the changes and what's behind them.
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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MaryM
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| Posted: March 07 2014 at 10:46am | IP Logged
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guitarnan wrote:
The changes are definitely related to Common Core. The College Board CEO, David Coleman, used to work for Student Achievement Partners, one of the groups that played a big role in development of Common Core.
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This is definitely all interconnected. He is the main architect of Common Core. He is a very powerful person in education - watching this with great interest.
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Mary M. in Denver
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Kathryn
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| Posted: March 07 2014 at 11:11am | IP Logged
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I mentioned this on another site that I don't really know a lot about common core but seeing this name made me look him up. Here's an interesting blog post:
Blog about meeting David Coleman
My biggest question is...when was the last time he TAUGHT in a classroom? When was he EVER involved in teaching students? It's a bit "scary" indeed that one man seems to have such power and influence over the entire educational system that is now being adopted simply b/c they get federal $$ to do so. And yet from what I see looking at his educational background, I guarantee his philosophy wouldn't match mine. ???
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Kathryn in TX
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Kathryn
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| Posted: March 07 2014 at 11:15am | IP Logged
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Ok...digging more...a few more quotes from the article Nancy posted above:
"Coleman intended to come home to New York City and work as a public-school teacher. But when he realized he wouldn’t find a job teaching high-school English" (so guess he hasn't ever taught)
However, this quote DOES make sense to me and would likely be very much in line with a Charlotte Mason approach:
“When you cover too many topics,” Coleman said, “the assessments designed to measure those standards are inevitably superficial.” He pointed to research showing that more students entering college weren’t prepared and were forced into “remediation programs from which they never escape.” In math, for example, if you examined data from top-performing countries, you found an approach that emphasized “far fewer topics, far deeper,” the opposite of the curriculums he found in the United States, which he described as “a mile wide and an inch deep.”
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Kathryn in TX
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SeaStar
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| Posted: March 07 2014 at 11:24am | IP Logged
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Some see this as a "dumbing down" of the SAT- the vocabulary on the old test was deemed to difficult, etc.
Do you think that is the case?
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Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)
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Kathryn
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| Posted: March 07 2014 at 11:39am | IP Logged
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SeaStar wrote:
Some see this as a "dumbing down" of the SAT- the vocabulary on the old test was deemed to difficult, etc.
Do you think that is the case? |
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I can understand why many would say that. I guess having 2 children so close in age and yet so vastly apart in their academic achievement/ability gives me a little different perspective than if I had 2 high-achieving children seeking entrance into a "select" college. I guess the point is...what's the goal? From what I read, it sounds like he wants to open the doors to more select colleges to those who can handle the work but might not have the experience to score so high due to their socioeconomic background to handle such a rigorous test. OR, the $$$ to prep for it and score well like many can. In and of itself, that doesn't sound like a bad thing. ??
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Kathryn in TX
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SeaStar
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| Posted: March 07 2014 at 11:45am | IP Logged
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When I first read about the changes, I thought: hooray! no more expensive prep classes and no more derailing regular studies for special "test studies".
The idea of dumbing down did not occur to me, but I have heard it mentioned a few times now.
I haven't dealt with ACT or SAT testing in a long time, so I can't judge one way or another.
I wish standardized tests would just go away all together!
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Melinda, mom to ds ('02) and dd ('04)
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guitarnan
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| Posted: March 07 2014 at 12:02pm | IP Logged
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But using a test to open those doors...???
Especially one that was not originally designed as a college readiness test?
I do think the vocab section is being dumbed down. We will end up with young adults who can't easily enjoy classic literature because they don't understand all the words used by the authors.
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Nancy in MD. Mom of ds (24) & dd (18); 31-year Navy wife, move coordinator and keeper of home fires. Writer and dance mom.
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Kathryn
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| Posted: March 07 2014 at 12:06pm | IP Logged
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SeaStar wrote:
I wish standardized tests would just go away all together! |
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Now that I WHOLEHEARTEDLY agree with!! 
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Kathryn in TX
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4Real Forums : High School Years and Beyond
Topic: SAT changes
