<p>The schools might need a couple of days to get the test scores loaded into infinite campus or whatever your school uses. Our school keeps track of every kind of standardized test the kids ever take. I was thinking that might be a way to see scores sooner than the day they get sent home, by checking IC. We saw D’s AP scores a couple weeks before they were online at CB this year when they showed up in her college acct.</p>
<p>I wonder if the answer sheets come paired with test booklets already, or do schools have to sort those? They have to get them to the homeroom teachers or whoever meets with kids. At our schools they have group meetings to discuss how to understand the scores and use them to help in planning and preparing for future tests, and stuff like that.</p>
<p>I doubt the schools think there is any urgency to distributing scores. They don’t think that way about these things. It only really matters to kids who typically score in the top 5% on tests, who might get NMSF. And if you get a high score or a low score or whatever, what will you do any differently between now and mid-January anyway? Not saying I share their mindset, but I understand it. Though one could make the argument that one’s kid is signed up for January SAT and needs score breakdown to better target study efforts over winter break. That line might work. It’s reasonable. That is the point of PSAT, right? To help with SAT?</p>
<p>What is REALLY aggravating is when your kid has a borderline score for your state and you have to wait until late September for NMSC’s official release date to find out status. Families are finalizing college plans and considering applying to the big scholarship schools. That made me crazy. GC insisted scores were not there, probably told to say that by principal, since GC is a nice guy and wouldn’t make our lives difficult unless under instruction to do so. At our HS probably 10-20 families a year are in this situation as our state has a 6 point spread for qualifying score, though not many send their kids to these schools, so perhaps not many people care so much.</p>
<p>I think schools distribute PSAT scores later so they can “counsel” kids instead of them just getting the scores on line. The CB encourages this. I think it’s a leftover from a previous era. </p>
<p>Since my kid’s schools simply calls them all into the auditorium and hands out all of the packages to all of the juniors, in front of everyone on a Friday afternoon, I wish they would just give the access code (or get rid of all of this foolishness) already. It’s not like they allow for any privacy whatsoever.</p>
<p>FWIW, my kid’s school is one that will have a high percentage of NMSF (magnet school) and they don’t distribute test books and scores a lot faster than anywhere else. I’m also under the impression that it’s a LOT less private than most schools.</p>
<p>Our school mails them home at the end of January. It would be nice if they would add the score to naviance since there is a spot for the PLAN and PSAT, but they don’t. They do post the subject test scores. </p>
<p>Shoboe your daughter sounds very mature. Add me to the list of those looking for academic schools without a bunch of type A’s running around. </p>
<p>Competitive parents and kids? Well I have instructed my kid to never discuss grades with anybody. Kids are always asking her what she got and last week a " random kid" came up to her and asked. A few weeks ago another random kid approached her and said " is it true your gpa is a ****? " She basically walked away. </p>
<p>Parents are worse, but basically it’s because they think their kid got a lower grade than what he/she deserves. Last year half the parents in one class complained because their kids were getting B’s and C’s.</p>
<p>Awaiting PSAT here too though honestly my anticipation about it tells me that I probably need to get a life :)</p>
<p>Since D fell in love with Columbia last week, she has agreed to do some SAT prep. I am shocked, but she gave me the go-ahead to give her about a half hour a day (meaning one test section, basically), some # of days a week for the next 7 weeks.</p>
<p>We’re (I say “we” because I am going to be the proctor/tutor) going to do the “Xiggi Method”, meaning do a practice section untimed, go over all answers, and then move after a week or so to timed sections, again going over all answers, eventually moving to just going over incorrect answers. I don’t see a reason to take a full timed test since she’s basically already done that twice with the PSAT.</p>
<p>IJD – our HS does the same thing, distributing the PSAT/PLAN scores en masse with no privacy. Makes me crazy! I’ve tried speaking to the counselors & admin about it, but not gotten any traction.</p>
<p>D’s school simply mailed the PSAT results out last year on December 13 or 14. I’m assuming they will do the same thing this year unless they handle the juniors’ scores differently. There was no counseling of any kind last year, lol. That’s not an unreasonable timetable if the tests were only sent out to the schools this week. Waiting until late January to send them seems ridiculous.</p>
<p>D’s school added her sophomore PSAT score to naviance but they will replace it with her SAT score (no idea when that will happen). I don’t think they’ll add the junior year PSAT if there is an SAT or ACT score. They don’t include the subject test scores either.</p>
<p>OHmom, my D really likes Columbia too but the college not SEAS. I don’t know that that means she actually wants to apply or attend though. :)</p>
<p>^ D liked both but SEAS has a slightly smaller common core requirement which is a plus for D. I am not sure how hard it is to start in SEAS and decide not to do engineering…though they are very cool about which type of engineering being undecided, they don’t declare until soph year and take more or less the same courses before that, including “Art of Engineering” which covers all the possible eng areas.</p>
<p>…and speaking of engineering, D gravitates toward it because she enjoys math and science, not really because she has a great understanding of what engineers do. She could just as easily enjoy medicine, or data analysis, or underwriting, or comp sci, or a number of other things. I really don’t know how to guide her here as it’s so personal - and major - a decision (“what do I want to be?”). The only guidance I have been able to offer so far is to encourage colleges where she won’t be locked into something she turns out not to like, and have to transfer.</p>
<p>As someone who started at a LAC where majors were declared during junior year, I find it odd and scary that she may have to make such a huge career decision at the age of 17.</p>
<p>How do your kids do it, or are they in the same sort of “not sure what I want to do” boat?</p>
<p>For those of us parents awaiting/dreading/anticipating PSAT scores, our HS PSAT counselor told me she received an e-mail stating that PSAT scores were put in the mail today so she’s anticipating having them in hand by the end of the week. I guess it will depend on the speed of the mail in various local areas.</p>
<p>Our school doesn’t intentionally “sit” on the scores, but they’re also not particularly expeditious about getting them out to the students either. The PSAT counselor will look at the scores, sort the packets, and then pass them along to the particular student’s first hour teacher for distribution to the student. </p>
<p>Luckily (hopefully ) for us, one particularly persuasive parent (who may or may not look remarkably similar to me) has sweet-talked the counselor into passing D2’s score along before the packets go to the first hour teachers. We’re hoping her score will be outside of the dreaded “borderline” zone for our state so we can start making “firmer” plans for the spring break OOS campus visit extravaganza. :)</p>
<p>No pop-ups here, but lots of banners showing fast food & resturants!</p>
<p>3Girls, I am sorry that your daughter’s friend is not being so nice. I posted a while back about BHG going through the same thing. She finally just stopped associating with the girls outside of an associate type relationship and I learned like you, to never discuss anything about BHG to the parents outside of silly things such as favorite color or movie or TV show. </p>
<p>When asked about test scores, BHG is instructed to reply with, “My scores are good enough to get me into where I want to apply.” If pressured, she just smiles and changes the subject to a current music artist, actress/actor, etc. </p>
<p>Regarding schools for type B personalities, there are a ton of schools out there! The schools are not slacker schools, but the students look at learning differently, as they are not competitive with each other and not out to get a fellow student. There is no asking how one did on a test or paper, and the students willingly try to help each other. The student body at these schools tend to be more laid back and easy-going.</p>
<p>I am not anxious about PSAT scores because I am not expecting her to be a NMF. I am sure she will do fine but I don’t think she will hit that magic number. I am not looking forward to kids asking about her score. Lately she gets snippy- why do you ask? Or quite simply- " it’s none of your business LOL. UGH.</p>
<p>My d13 was “borderline” PSAT two years ago and the wait was not fun. She missed it by one point. </p>
<p>I’ve said this before but I think a great option for the smart, motivated kid that doesn’t want (or shouldn’t be) to be surrounded by Type A’s is a big school Honors College. That is exactly what my d13 wanted and she is very happy. The classes are “competitive” but outside of the classroom it is not.</p>
<p>ahsmuoh…I completely agree. Our D1 is thriving at UMinn in the Honors program for exactly the reasons you mentioned, and that’s the direction D2 is looking…whether or not NM comes into play. If it does, she’ll simply have a larger pool of schools to look at. She’s already earned herself some great scholarship opportunities either way. </p>
<p>For her sake we hope she falls on the high side of the highest historical state cutoff, but if not it would almost be preferable to have her be several points below. As you know, the wait can be very stressful and I’d rather have her enjoy her senior year as much as possible.</p>
<p>With S’s Asperger’s issues, we’ve pretty much decided as a family that he’ll be best off staying at home for the first couple years and commuting to one of the nearby colleges/cc’s/satellite uni’s to get his “feet wet” and his gen ed requirements done. We’d love to have both of their paths more or less determined as early as possible in their senior year to cut down on the stress of it all. I know there will be families waiting on admissions decisions well into the spring of '15, and waiting even longer for FA/scholarship offers, but that’s not something that I see our kids or family handling very well.</p>
<p>2girls. just tell her to make sure she smiles while delivering the “it’s none of your business” line–lol. It comes off a bit more accepting with a big ol’ smile–lol. </p>
<p>A bit snarky or facetious, but gets the point across.</p>
<p>Yes BHM good point about smiling while she tells people it’s none of their business. I think she does that now but I need to remind her. It makes me very uncomfortable when parents tell me what their kids got on a test ( ie PLAN) because it makes me think they are expecting me to tell them my kids score, and I won’t.</p>
<p>I wish BHG’s GPA was higher, as there are several big U’s she would attend if she could get into their honor’s programs. The Uof MN is one of them since it’s in-state.</p>
<p>And, of course, the PSAT scores will be distributed at the most stressful time in the semester. D was reluctant to go back to school on Sunday for the first time in 2 years. I think the work pressure is getting to her. I can help vent some of that at home (or apply it if it’s needed) but it’s much harder to control dorm-mates’ behavior.</p>
<p>“I am pleased with my score, why do you ask?”
“I got a score that is above average for the colleges I am interested in, why do you ask?”
or just
“Why do you ask?”</p>
<p>I would love my daughter to choose a state schools honors college because she would get the best of both worlds. I would even be happy if she chooses our top state school which is only about 3 hours away. It has the academics but unfortunately does not really have much diversity- that’s the main down fall- but it’s a great school anyway and the price is right. </p>
<p>I was talking to my friend at work and she was watching a news show where the topic happened to be choosing a college. This particular speaker stated that in his opinion it is not wise to go to a school where every kid is very smart- it’s best to go where you are more at the top compared to others. She did not say that he was talking about merit when he made these comments. In my opinion this depends on the kid. I think my kid ( knowing her type A personality) would be much better off in an honors college. My friends kid goes to an honors college at a big state school and the kid only takes 2 honors classes each semester. The other 3 classes are not honors.</p>
) for us, one particularly persuasive parent (who may or may not look remarkably similar to me) has sweet-talked the counselor into passing D2’s score along before the packets go to the first hour teachers. We’re hoping her score will be outside of the dreaded “borderline” zone for our state so we can start making “firmer” plans for the spring break OOS campus visit extravaganza. :)</p>