babble » blogs » Strollerderby
Strollerderby
ACT Scores: Why Do I Care?
Taking a Test
Students who took their American College Testing (ACT) on October 23 can find out how they will did by checking the ACT Score Information site. Students can also forward the scores to colleges and scholarship agencies.
As the mother of an 8-year-old and a 5-year-old, I’m not yet thinking about the ACT, but I do have standardized testing on my mind. Coincidentally, yesterday, my 3rd grader came home from school and announced, “I took a big test today, a real test. I had to fill in circles with a pencil.”
She seemed quite proud that she had entered the academic big league, but my husband and I were wary of the introduction of standardized tests. I always did well in school, but I always panicked on standardized tests.
Besides, my husband and I encourage our daughters to do the sort of creative thinking that doesn’t get measured by standardized tests. That said, of course, we want our girls to do well on these tests so they can get into middle school, high school, and college (here in New York City, you actually have to apply to middle school so the tests really do matter!)
Luckily, my husband, a former Princeton Review teacher, aces standardized tests and was able to teach our 8-year-old the basic principal behind beating the test. It’s all about probability. Even if you don’t know the answer, there’s a good chance you can eliminate the wrong answers. The more wrong answers you eliminate, the likelier your chance of getting the right answer.
In an ideal world, we wouldn’t have to rely on standardized testing at all. But in this world, where the test scores matter, I’d rather teach my kids how to beat the system.
What do you think? Should you coach kids on how to excel at standardized tests?
MORE FROM STROLLERDERBY
Is Attachment Parenting a Prison for Mothers?
10 Best Parents in Children’s Literature
4-Year-Old Kicked Out of Pre-K Over Long Hair
What to Do When You Hate Your Friend’s Kids?
Most Popular Boy’s Name in Britain: Mohammed?
Note to Moms: Don’t Complain About Your Weight
photo: flickr/ peruisay
Go Back To Strollerderby
1 Comment
ajedrez commented on Jul 01 11 at 8:42 pmI think a lot of the strategies to do well should be common sense to many children. I didn’t have to learn the process-of-elimination strategy (in fact, the teachers taught it to me well after I had figured it out myself), and was still able to do well on all of my tests. Then again, I consider myself a very gifted student.
Add your take:
Note: Babble is a supportive, diverse community. We encourage a range of opinions,
but any unduly hostile comments will be removed.
Comments are delayed up to 15 minutes
Lori Garcia 
Joslyn Gray 
Amber Doty 
Julianna Miner 
Monica Bielanko 
Sierra Black 
Meredith Carroll 
Carolyn Castiglia 
Sunny Chanel 
Madeline Holler 
Rebecca Odes 
Danielle Smith 
Danielle Sullivan 
Katherine Stone 
The Walt Disney Company supports Babble as a platform dedicated to honest, engaged, informed, intelligent and open conversation about parenting. However, the opinions expressed on this site are those of individual parents/writers and do not reflect the views of Disney. In addition, content provided on this site is for entertainment or informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice, diagnosis, treatment, or safety advice.
1