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Status:
"I don't understand. But I don't care, so it works out."
(set 8 days ago)
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Quote:
Originally Posted by glass_of_merlot
If he takes it again, and score a little less. Does the latest one count over the older better score?
They said they'd give her a free test and if she scored within 6 points of the 1230 they'll let that stand.
I think that's patently unfair. That's way way too narrow a window. I'd say if she scores within 100 points.
I would really like to know more. How similar were her answers? With a score of 1230, she had many incorrect answers - were virtually ALL of them incorrect choosing the same wrong answer as one or more students?
On the other hand, if she pays for it she can keep that new score no matter what it is. You can take the SAT many times and colleges look at your best score.
Obviously there is software to scan for and report abnormalities in scores. Once those abnormalities are flagged, then they investigate....and after they investigated they found an issue. It was the initial surge in points that brought her test to the attention of the review board, but there are other factors that resulted in the final decision. I would think the Board would be very sure they were making the right decision. They have no reason to flag any one student......there are hundreds of thousands of kids that take this test.
It seems that there are a group of students and this is the only one going public??????
Why wouldn't the others be contacted and why wouldn't they join in this complaint if they were 'innocent'?
Also, the claims of lost scholarships.....universities have lots of play with offering deals to students. While the deadline for application has passed, I can almost guarantee if this young lady was to retake the SAT and score as well...and there is no reason she shouldn't score as well, the university might take into consideration her situation.
Seriously, how am I the only one still pondering the fact that an "honors" student got a 930 on her first SAT try?
Improving 300 points isn't that hard, given prep and learning test taking strategy and also starting from such a low freaking first score, but what kind of diluted, meaningless "honors" program produces students who can't crack 1k on an SAT? That's absurd.
I can answer that. I actually didn't do too well on my SAT back in the day. I was an honor student and I went on to be an honor student in college. The weird thing is, I "am" a good test taker. I took the SAT in my junior year and didn't do poorly, but didn't do great either. I had a cold and it was hard to concentrate. My score was in the 900s. I took it again in my senior year and I was sick AGAIN. I had pneumonia (but it wouldn't be diagnosed for two more days). I actually did about the same. I gave up on it after that. It was too much stress and trouble. Besides, I didn't want to go straight to a university as it was expensive. I wanted to start college locally and cheaper.
I ended up first going to a junior college and graduated with honors. Then I transferred to a university program (with a couple of grants and scholarships) to earn my degree.
Of course, this article says nothing about her being sick when she took the exam. I am just pointing out that some circumstances can make an exam harder and it is possible for a good student to do poorly on the SAT.
If he takes it again, and score a little less. Does the latest one count over the older better score?
Yes.
With SATs you can pick your best grade, you can even mix and match verbal and math. Some schools, however, will want to see your whole history.
PSAT is a one-shot deal, offered once a year and only junior year scores qualify you for National Merit.
He's a really good student but did better than he expected. Times are so different now. He just did some practice books on his own to get a feel for the tests but I'll still send him to class for the SAT. Almost everyone does now, so if you don't you're at a disadvantage.
The increase in score was not the issue, it was that her answer pattern matched those of another. I don't see why she needs to grandstand with an attorney though.
Quote:
A teen who improved her SAT score by more than 300 points now stands accused of cheating on the college admission test.
Kamilah Campbell, 18, an honors student and dancer at Dr. Michael M. Krop Senior High School in Miami, Fla., was recently informed by the Educational Testing Service (ETS) and College Board (organizations that conduct the exam) that her SAT score of 1,230 is invalid. https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/teen...224741819.html
Help me out, those with knowledge of the SAT scores AND grades. 1600 is perfect. I know that
She goes from 900 to 1230 an increase of 300. Here's what I don't get, how does an honor student only score 900?
I see that another poster answered that question.
The PSATs were not done so she wasn't prepared that way? I wonder how similar the answers were?
I can honestly see not wanting to take the test again. Scores can vary pretty widely from one test to the next. She may also be a very bad test taker. I knew kids who were really good students, AP classes and all, who did not perform as expected on the SATs.
That being said, she's probably not doing herself any favors with the publicity.
My son is a sophomore and just took the PSAT. I said take it, get a baseline, see what you need to work on. He got a 1480 out of 1520, which if he were a junior would probably qualify him for National Merit. Now he'll probably be freaked out when he takes it next year thinking he has to improve.
Considering what National Merit Finalist means in terms of admission and scholarships, your son sits perilously close to that cut-off and could fall either way. I'd strongly urge you to have him test prep because there are huge dollars at stake (unless you have some other angle where that doesn't matter).
Getting finalist status got my kid an extra 35k or so in scholarships beyond what other scores would have earned.
National merit finalist is really the willy wonka gold ticket out there in admissions and scholarship land.
I can answer that. I actually didn't do too well on my SAT back in the day. I was an honor student and I went on to be an honor student in college. The weird thing is, I actually "am" a good test taker. I took the SAT in my junior year and didn't do poorly, but didn't do great either. I had a cold at it was hard to concentrate. My score was in the 900s. I took it again in my senior year and I was sick AGAIN. I actually had pneumonia (but it wouldn't be diagnosed for two more days). I actually did about the same. I gave up on it after that. It was too much stress and trouble. Besides, I didn't want to go straight to a university as it was expensive. I wanted to start college locally and cheaper.
I ended up first going to a junior college and graduated with honors. Then I transferred to a university program to earn my degree.
Of course, this article says nothing about her being sick when she took the exam. I am just pointing out that some circumstances can make an exam harder and it is possible for a good student to do poorly on the SAT.
Plenty of smart kids bombed the SAT the first time they took it.
I knew a girl from my neighborhood (she was in public school, I was in private school) who was an excellent student who bombed her SAT the first time she took it. Why? Well...she had no test prep (her parents thought it was a waste of money) and she was sick. She didn't want to take the test sick but her parents didn't want to "waste money" as there were no refunds if she was a no-show. So she toughed it out and bombed it. Back when I was in high school, most of the kids I knew who bothered with SAT prep classes were kids who bombed their PSATs or their SATs first time out. This girl didn't bomb her PSAT...she was a NMSF.
She took the SAT again a couple of months later...with no test prep...and her score improved by 260 points.
With SATs you can pick your best grade, you can even mix and match verbal and math. Some schools, however, will want to see your whole history.
PSAT is a one-shot deal, offered once a year and only junior year scores qualify you for National Merit.
He's a really good student but did better than he expected. Times are so different now. He just did some practice books on his own to get a feel for the tests but I'll still send him to class for the SAT. Almost everyone does now, so if you don't you're at a disadvantage.
There is on-line (free) PSAT\SAT test prep stuff that gives you questions and as you go along it starts focusing in on the types of questions you've tended to get wrong.
I highly recommend it. If you can't find it, send me a DM and I'll ask my kid what it was.
Also, in case you don't know the cut-offs for national merit vary by STATE.
NY is one of the tougher states to get National Merit, it typically ranges from about 205 in Arkansas up to around 223 in Massachusetts out of 240 max.
"Campbell took the test in March and earned a 900 (1,600 is a perfect score). But she hadn’t studied much beforehand and she wanted to improve, so in October, Campbell took the test again, after spending the summer working with a private tutor and resources from the Khan Academy, an SAT-prep company."
Sounds reasonable. Especially if one has the smarts associated with an honors student.
"The letter sent to Yahoo Lifestyle does not mention that Campbell’s improved scores were a factor in the investigation"
okay so it's not about the improvement. That may have been the red flag but what concerned the authorities is the similar answers.
due to “substantial agreement between your answers on one or more scores sections of the test and those of other test-takers.”
Were the other test takers scores questioned? If not, her lawyers are licking their chops. Granted, if she did cheat her lawyers wont want to bring that up since that would out her. It's not their job to find the truth, it's their job to protect her.
There is on-line (free) PSAT\SAT test prep stuff that gives you questions and as you go along it starts focusing in on the types of questions you've tended to get wrong.
I highly recommend it. If you can't find it, send me a DM and I'll ask my kid what it was.
Also, in case you don't know the cut-offs for national merit vary by STATE.
NY is one of the tougher states to get National Merit, it typically ranges from about 205 in Arkansas up to around 223 in Massachusetts out of 240 max.
Thanks, I'm definitely going to have him do that. Pretty sure the college board site has free test prep. Current plan is to take PSAT again in October and SAT for the first time in March of junior year or so.
Wow, MA is even tougher than NY! Our cutoff is around 221, so he's right on the edge, you're correct.
I'll look into classes or a tutor as well. His math is stronger than his verbal overall- he only missed one question- so I would prefer he focus on that.
Congrats to your child- you must be so proud!
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