<p>Are there negative marking in SAT? </p>
<p>My son plans to take DUKE TIP ACT/SAT. I want to find out if any of these exams have negative markings (Means if they have a penlity markings, they deduct some marks for wrong answers)?</p>
<p>thanks</p>
<p>On the SAT, for every answer you get wrong it’s -.25 pts
For every answer you omit (leave blank), there’s not a penalty
It’s like a “guessing penalty” …if you don’t have a clue what the answer might be you shouldn’t guess but if you can eliminate a few, then guess.</p>
<p>There’s no penalty for wrong answers on the ACT…guess all you want!</p>
<p>Good luck to your son!</p>
<p>Thanks Smile614.</p>
<p>I wanted to confirm if the penalty rule for SAT is same for 7th grader DUKE TIP SAT test takers?</p>
<p>As he is 7th gradre, he is very likely to make wrong guesses so I feel that ACT should be better for him.</p>
<p>thanks</p>
<p>“Better” in what way? At his age, this is strictly aptitude, to determine whether he can do well on a test designed for older kids. Any score he gets is really gravy at this point, on either test.</p>
<p>The College Board deletes test scores of 7th and 8th graders (unless you specifically ask that a score be retained). </p>
<p>Please don’t pressure the kid to “do well.” Just tell him to do his best, that it’s an honor to be considered for the talent search, and take whatever score he gets on whichever test with good grace.</p>
<p>Then read the beginning on how the test is wriiten and how to take it. It is quite informative.</p>
<p>It’s the same for 7th graders.</p>
<p>But it doesn’t really matter at this point. I’ve never even heard of the SAT or ACT when I took it. I just thought it was a really hard standarized test…really early on a Saturday morning. I took the SAT in the 7th grade and fell asleep during most of the CR. Then I filled in like 30 answers in 5-10 minutes (didn’t know abou the penalty). My score wasn’t too bad! haha. Just tell him to do his best and not totally blow it off but no pressure! </p>
<p>And it doesn’t really matter what test he takes right now. Unless you live in a region where most of the kids take one test over the other. It’s hard to tell when he’s so young what test will be best for him.</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-act-tests-test-preparation/78732-7th-grade-sat-act-scores.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-act-tests-test-preparation/78732-7th-grade-sat-act-scores.html</a> </p>
<p>Don’t worry too much about the details of how each test is scored.</p>
<p>mtc2 go to the Duke/TIP website and read about the philosophy of above level testing.The child that takes this type of test is his/her own competition. It is a chance to find out where he/she stands aptitude-wise without contamination from test prep, etc. It makes no difference how it is scored as long as everybody is scored the same way. Like owlice says, it’s an honor to qualify to take it (in our neck of the woods it is the top 5% of the usual standardized grade level tests). Besides having gone to school (or for some people, homeschooling) for the previous 7 years, there shouldn’t be any prep. A good night’s sleep and a good breakfast should suffice. Good luck.</p>
<p>I know it is stupid question, but is it worth to take the SAT?ACT exam and spending $60-70.
My son says that he would rather buys lego blocks with that money.</p>
<p>Please dont get mad on this question. and serious thoughts on the money worth spend on these exams at 7th grade?</p>
<p>thank you</p>
<p>I thought it was a good experience. Just take one of them though, not both.
It also made me feel better when I took the PSAT as a sophmore just beacuse I kinda knew what type of questions were going to be on it and how long it was going to be…etc
And it was the first time I started thinking about college!</p>
<p>Of course, if money is an issue, you might reconsider.
Or if your son really really really doesn’t want to do it…and won’t even try, then there’s really no point forcing him because it won’t be a very accurate indicator of his strengths/weaknesses/potential on future tests</p>
<p>I’ve been involved in CTY Talent Search since 5th grade and it is definitely worth it if you use the tests to qualify for their programs. I’ve done at least one program every year since then and it has been well worth it and I would encourage taking the courses and attending conferences etc if you have the opprotunity. However, if you’re simply going to take the test and then not use the programs offered then I really think it is basically a waste since all it tells you is “hey, look, Johnny got 600 CR on the SAT in 7th grade.”</p>
<p>thanks Smile614 and raiderade for a prompt reply.
it is not that he is not interested. Just thinking if it is worth of the money. ANd if the duke conferences.programs etc are costly then again money will be an issue.
but I think I will spend that money and see if there is any use of this exam for him in future.
I dont want to regret if in future I find out that he sold have taken this eam.
I am planning him to take act as he will not be penalised for wrong answers.
I know I am taking these decisions for him but you will agree that 7th graders are not old enough to take these type of decisoons.
thank you,</p>
<p>I can see that you are worried about him being “penalized” by wrong answers. Did you read what above level testing means? As I said before, at this point, the competition is with himself. Is he going to look good or bad? This is not a judgment. It is a test to see where he stands. You are trying to find out unbiased information as early as possible that will help you make decisions for years to come. Is it worth the $60? Definitely.</p>
<p>(by the way, he never went to any of the summer programs provided by CTY and Duke. He did start taking classes in the summer at the local college and university after 10th grade).</p>
<p>Of course, he’s going to get a lot of wrong answers. That’s OK and to be expected with this kind of above-level testing. Both of my children did it, and we found it very beneficial. They both went on to summer camps based on their test scores, but we received a lot of scholarship money. I think it was a good investment.</p>
<p>If S really wants to take it, go ahead. D did do TIP programs as sophomore ( field study) and they were fabulous, she was able to use her PSAT and transcript along with teacher recs. If you are going to do the 7th and 8th grade programs thru CTY then it is helpful, but keep in mind those are expensive.</p>
<p>My 7th grade son will be taking the Duke TIP SAT in Jan 2010. Are there any recommended test prep materials for this?</p>
<p>Thanks,
msim</p>
<p>Extensive prep defeats the purpose of above-level testing. I think it’s a good idea for a kid to learn about the format of the test and how it’s scored, but much more than that and taking a practice test is plenty IMHO.</p>
<p>Have your son read the booklet the College Board sends, and have him take a practice test (which comes with the registration stuff). I had my then-7th grader take a section or two every couple of days. He did not sit down and take an entire test until he took the SAT for real.</p>
<p>Congratulate him for taking the test, and if you bake him a cake to celebrate, please send a slice my way; thanks! :)</p>
<p>I agree with owlice. Both my children went standby as they agreed to take the test (SAT for one and ACT for the other) only about 2-3 weeks before the test. They did not prepare extensively and did a few practice tests. The younger one who did the ACT only looked at the Math and Reading during practice and on the actual test used a random guess strategy on the science portion (he did not do well in that portion but he did get into CTY -:)). Don’t stress about it, let them do their best and just concentrate on just the sections they need to do. They will do fine.</p>
<p>Also remember the highest cut off (among all the similar tests) is the CTY program from JHU. JHU also has the CAA program which has lower cut off and is the same as the TIP from Duke. So if you are in TIP area, then you have an advantage over those wanting CTY.</p>
<p>Agree with other posters that, aside from having your child familiarize himself with the testing procedures, your child should not prep for this test, as extensive test prep defeats the whole purpose of the talent search programs. From the CTY website:</p>
<p>"As used by CTY, the SAT and ACT provide more information about a childs mathematical and reading/verbal strengths. How is this? Both of these tests establish a much higher ceiling than the grade-level exams children normally take. </p>
<p>A child who tests in higher percentiles of the SAT or ACT is a very good candidate for more challenging course work and other modifications to a school curriculum. Such information should have a great impact on the future educational pathways."</p>
<p>Out of level testing is a very effective tool to help assess the level of a child’s academic talents and inform parents and educators of needed educational interventions. In our D’s case, the CTY testing confirmed the need for full grade acceleration. She did no prep whatsoever for the SAT - she did not even want to read the test booklet prior to testing. She qualified for CTY programs without any prep. Good luck to your child!</p>