Got sick during ACT on Saturday...need advice

pumpkin65 · 06-15-2008, 12:59 PM

I'd have posted this on the SAT/ACT Forum, but it might get a quicker look here...

My D got violently ill as she finished the last section of the ACT yesterday. The grandparents were the first to get the call, plus, they live very close to testing site, so they picked her up. She is doing fine today.

Does anyone know the process for cancelling ACT scores?

Did she need to request then and there that the scores be voided? Or are we out of luck now? No one had the presence of mind to do this yesterday, and by the time Dad and I knew what happened, the test was over and done with.

I called the folks at ACT yesterday. I got bounced around a bit - they are not sending the scores anywhere, but I would prefer that the scores get cancelled. She will retake in Sept., but if the scores are recorded, and the better scores are sent in the future, my fear is that the unfinished test score will travel along with the other.

WayOutWestMom · 06-15-2008, 01:14 PM

I don't know if ACT scores can be cancelled; however, I can assure you that when you send ACT score out to various colleges, only the date you wish to be sent is sent. Any other results are not included in the test report.

My D took the ACT twice and I had to order separate reports for each test date.

b@r!um · 06-15-2008, 01:58 PM

I second WayOutWestMom. ACT will only report the test score you pick, unlike Collegeboard which releases all scores.

Taxicab · 06-15-2008, 02:07 PM

Check with the high school. My daughter's scores were on her transcripts!

hsmomstef · 06-15-2008, 02:08 PM

no need to cancel the scores -- might as well see how she did on the parts she completed. Like the others said -- you get to pick which test dates to send, so if the scores are bad you just don't send them.

ignatius · 06-15-2008, 02:22 PM

I agree with Taxicab. Even if scores are not officially sent, they are listed on the hs transcript. I did not realize this until someone mentioned it to me. When I asked the gc at school, she confirmed that ALL test scores are on the transcript.

b@r!um · 06-15-2008, 02:27 PM

Not all high schools put SAT or ACT scores on students' transcripts.

But the OP said that all score reports have been canceled. If the high school does not get a score report, it does not know that this score exists and the score will not show up on the high school transcript. Easy as that.

pumpkin65 · 06-15-2008, 02:43 PM

When I spoke to someone at ACT yesterday, it sounded as if they were even cancelling sending them to the high school. We had not ever even indicated that we wanted to send the scores to any colleges, so we are good there.

But to me, it didn't sound as if they were cancelling or voiding the entire exam.

I've also sent an email to her GC asking if the school puts scores on transcripts - just in case they do get them.

Thanks to everyone for your advice.

BunsenBurner · 06-15-2008, 02:50 PM

With ACT you can cherry-pick which score you want to be sent to colleges. Since your D was not going to send the scores to any college in the first place, you have nothing to worry about. Not all high schools put the scores on the transcripts, so check with your school. Ours does not, and scores on HS transcript might not matter much. A college rep told D that his particular college only looks at the scores on the official ACT score report.

ilsa belter · 06-15-2008, 03:21 PM

SAT and ACT (and SAT II and AP) scores should not be put on hs transcripts. It is actually a FERPA violation. These scores should only be released to other institutions (colleges) with the permission of the student. Go to the CB website and go to their "professional" subheading and you will find this info. This can usually be avoided by not putting the hs code on the test form, but if they have already been posted on the transcript they can ALL be taken off before transcripts are sent out. Usually high schools require a letter (if the student is under 18), requesting such. In most cases, high schools list them on transcripts simply because it's easier for THEM to have all data about one student on one piece of paper.

Deja · 06-15-2008, 04:55 PM

Ilsa, thankyouThankYouTHANKYOU!!! My school system plasters all scores on the transcript, same side as grades. Thanks to your directions, I found the relevant College Board article. I include the link and relevant points below.

http://www.collegeboard.com/prod_dow...Test020729.pdf

2. FOR INSTITUTIONS,AGENCIES, AND ORGANIZATIONS
Schools, community colleges, four-year colleges, universities, scholarship agencies, and
other organizations should:
2.4 Protect the privacy of test-takers by treating confidentially, in accordance with the
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act,3 the scores and other information
derived from the tests they take, bearing in mind the additional considerations
involved with electronic transmission and the potential for retransmission.

2.7 Guard against the release or forwarding to third parties College Board scores,
grades, or student transcripts that include this information.

3. COUNSELING
Counselors should:
3.6 Release the scores and other information derived from a test a student takes only
with the student’s explicit consent, if the student could be identified from the
released information.

SoCalGal09 · 06-15-2008, 07:41 PM

On ACT you can check a box not to send scores to the HS.

2VU0609 · 06-15-2008, 08:20 PM

OP,
If a student becomes ill during the test, the room supervisor should have reported it to the test supervisor and an irregularity report is completed. If a student chooses, their test may be scored. Did anyone ask your daughter what she wanted to do? I'm sure this happens frequently. I had it happen in the room that I was supervising on Saturday for the first time in the 8 years I have been working the ACT.
I can't emphasize enough the benefits of omitting high school information for the purposes of score choice. As many previous posters have mentioned, even though ACT will only send the scores you request, many high schools include the scores on the transcripts. While many guidance counselors will delete this information when requested, it is so much easier if you don't even have to fight that battle.

pumpkin65 · 06-15-2008, 08:49 PM

Everyone, again thanks for all of the informative posts. I knew there would be knowledgeable responses on CC. I will be interested to hear how her GC responds to my question about the scores going on the transcripts, if the school ever receives them. We will avoid putting the high school code on tests in the future if it won't cause something else to go wrong. As long as no harm is done, I don't see a point in providing it.

To answer 2VU0609, no, they did not ask her what she wanted to do. They were concerned for her, and they were concerned about getting in touch with an emergency contact who could come get her quickly. Nothing was said to her, or her grandfather, about what to do with the test.

I called ACT around 1:30 pm yesterday to attempt to cancel the scores, but as I stated before, it seemed all they were doing was cancelling sending the scores anywhere, not cancelling the entire test.

NYmama · 06-15-2008, 08:57 PM

Pumpkin, the ACT people are very good about NOT sending scores if you ask them. I had called them and asked them not to send the scores to d's hs in case she didn't do well and the woman I spoke to said she would change the school information to "school unknown" or something to that effect. When she received her paper scores it did not indicate the hs name at all. I then was able to select her highest score to send to the HS, which they included on her transcript. You may want to call ACT again and make sure they removed her HS name. You can always add it at another time & have her take the test as many times as she wants without anyone at the HS knowing her lowest scores.