Compromise to the TJHSST Admissions Process (2014, how much, home)

[Shelborne_22033]

Last Saturday, there were technical glitches with the technology used during the SIS/essay portion of the TJHSST Admissions test. A semi-finalist (tester) would attempt to save their work only to be kicked out of the system forcing them to start over. It was a problem County wide.

Here is an eMail excerpt from the TJHSST Director of Admissions explaining how they will rectify the situation.

"... but it was determined the only way to ensure fairness to all students is to re-administer the SIS and essay. Knowing this is a burden on semi-finalists and their parents/guardians, the SIS and essay can be completed at home between February 6 and February 11, 2014. The SIS/essay will be available via a fillable PDF form on February 6, 2014 at 4:00PM. This format should reduce the chances of technical issues... "

Having the TJ semi-finalists complete the SIS/essay at home compromises the integrity of the TJ Admission process. I guess the TJHSST Principles Regarding Academic Integrity only apply to current students not prospective students. How are they going to prevent an overzealous parent from helping their child get into one of the top public high schools in the country? How will they mitigate this risk?

The better way would have been to administer the SIS/essay again using the same technology over a period of time with multiple sessions per day. This would prevent system overload and provide better last minute scheduling options. Or they could have done it with good ole pencil and paper and write the SIS/essay in a controlled, proctored environment.

Maybe I am expecting too much from the FCPS Board and the TJHSST Admissions Office. Am I?

[Muffy62]

You are

I thought they were suppose to make the math portion of the test harder but they didn't. I heard the math was pretty easy. How much is FCPS paying for the TJHSST admissions office (all the employees that work on the TJ test/selection)? You would think they would have a plan B just in case the technology fails -- maybe have paper and pencil on hand so the kids can fill it out by hand????

[Shelborne_22033]

Originally Posted by Muffy62

You are

I thought they were suppose to make the math portion of the test harder but they didn't. I heard the math was pretty easy. How much is FCPS paying for the TJHSST admissions office (all the employees that work on the TJ test/selection)? You would think they would have a plan B just in case the technology fails -- maybe have paper and pencil on hand so the kids can fill it out by hand????

To become a semifinalist, the students had to score a 30/50 on the math portion of the exam and a GPA and total test score that both fall within the sliding scale used for the semifinalist pool determination (7th grade final marks (report card grades) in math, science, English, and social studies and 1st Quarter 8th grade marks (report card grades) in math, science, English, and social studies). I have no idea if the test was harder or easier in previous years. It does not matter as long as every student is given the same questions and amount of time to complete.

Yes, Murphy reared it's ugly head. To me, it is disappointing how the TJHSST Admissions' Office was so unprepared and how their solution compromises the integrity of their process.

[Muffy62]

They were suppose to make the math portion harder due to the amount of TJ students needing remediation in Math. The admissions process hasn't changed much since my son went through it. The only difference is the SIS being written in a controlled environment. The essays use to be written right after the math/verbal test and they would look at them if the student made it to the semi-final round.

And it is NOT surprising how badly the TJHSST Admissions' Office is handling this

[Shelborne_22033]

Originally Posted by Muffy62

They were suppose to make the math portion harder due to the amount of TJ students needing remediation in Math. The admissions process hasn't changed much since my son went through it. The only difference is the SIS being written in a controlled environment. The essays use to be written right after the math/verbal test and they would look at them if the student made it to the semi-final round.

And it is NOT surprising how badly the TJHSST Admissions' Office is handling this

Here is the reply I received from the TJ Admissions Office yesterday
"Students must affirm prior to submitting their completed SIS and Essay that the work they are submitting is their own, which coincides with TJ's mission and honor code. While the original intent was to test at a school, we also do not want to put any semifinalist under any additional stress by re-testing in a controlled setting. Semifinalists will now have several days to process the questions and produce their best work rather than the 90 minute/30 minute testing time on January 25. This is also the procedure done prior to the 2012-2013 admissions process.

We sincerely apologize for this situation and any inconvenience this may have caused your child. No decision is perfect. At the same time, the decision to move to providing the SIS and Essay at home was deemed the best solution available for all semifinalists and their families given the conditions resulting from the January 25 administration."


Not to be overly cynical but business as usual. Our property tax dollars at work..

[Muffy62]

No, when my son took the TJ test -- he wrote his essays after he finished his math/verbal sections at the test center. The SIS was sent in after he made the semi-finalist cut. This was 5 years ago and they have tinkered with the admissions process since then (not in a positive way). The math portion was suppose to be more difficult in hopes of fixing the remediation problem. My son had said many of the incoming freshmen students had problems with the math classes.

I feel bad for all the students as it is a stressful process. I assume your child is a semi-finalist for next year's class -- good luck.