ACT Testing for Middle School??

[punkin]

I am a guidance counselor. Unless there is a different test for middle school (I am only familiar with the ones high schoolers take), THIS IS ACCURATE. Check with your counselor. This is true for the SAT's also.
Check the website:

http://www.actstudent.org/scores/send/index.html

Requests are processed AFTER your tests have been scored and all scores for your test option—ACT (No Writing) or ACT Plus Writing—are ready.

note the word "all"

No. You have to pay for each test sent from the ACT and you choose the ones sent. i just went through this with my daughter for college. SATs also have score choice new for this year. Additionally, any SATs taken before the age of 13 are not sent to colleges unless explicitly requested.


ETA: try this link http://www.actstudent.org/faq/answers/morethanonce.html

 

[Aristomommy]

To the OP: the test is not mandatory, so why worry what the school recommends or other parents choose to do? For some families it is a reasonable choice.

I know from many families that the SAT or ACT score taken before high school do not show on the record even if the college requests all scores. Also, if for some reason the rules should change, a college would be foolish to dismiss an otherwise qualified student because they didn't do well on the test at age 13.

DD11 has been taking the Explore test since 4th grade. This year she had the choice of SAT/ACT or the Explore again through our local talent search since she is in 6th grade. She has enjoyed the experience of the testing as we keep it fun and do not test prep at all. She wants to attend a summer camp this year through the talent search and we are considering online classes, so the test make sense to us.

 

[DalGal]

In the district I teach in, 8th graders take EXPLORE, 10th graders take PLAN, and 11th graders take ACT. The first two are used more a predictors/planning tools to assist students and familiarize them with the tests. For example, those who score well, may track differently (honors/AP courses) but the only scores that are reported to the colleges of their choice are the ACT scores. EVERY 11th grader takes the ACT on a designated day in the spring. The district pays the fee I believe.

 

[momxx5]

Our school system participates in the Duke TIPS program....

website:
http://www.tip.duke.edu/

It recognizes acedemically gifted students. This program offers the ACT and SAT to 7th graders. Not all children take the tests.

DS, now a sophmore, took the SAT in 7th grade with a score that could get him into a college at the time. He was recognized at a ceremony as one of the top 200 in the state.

The main reason for us allowing him to take the test was so he would understand what the test was, how to use his time wisely while taking the test, etc. He did not study for the test but did a few sample questions just to understand the timing issues.

In 9th grade all the students to the PSAT. Again, high score. We are so blessed and he understands his gift & how important it is to not squander it.

Mainly, he ended up on a lot of mailing lists offering classes/camps at schools all over the country and England too.
Due to finances we are unable to send him to any of them, but it is interesting to see the opportunities.

Now my other boys are also part of the TIPS program. They did not take the ACT or SAT. They did not need to be stressed out about it and we did not want any pressure comparing to older DS.

Maybe in some parts of the country they look at the ACT differently.

 

[semo233]

The College Board allows a student to select which colleges receive which score, by particular test or by testing date. They administer the SAT only, so I am not sure about the ACT and its reporting rules.

http://sat.collegeboard.com/register/sat-score-choice

But to the OP, if it is middle school SATs the scores are used differently from the times it taken in high school. They do not appear in the mix at all come junior year.

Please accept my humble appologies....this "choice" must be a recent update. I have worked at all levels of education and have been at elementary and middle school for 2 years. It's never too late to learn!

 

[clh2]

I can assure you that all tests taken prior to 9th grade are not reported. Those taken after 9th grade are reported. DD has participated in several opportunities due to these tests, we didn't have her study or prep at all. At the testing center (the local high school), the middle schoolers were in a separate room from the high school students, the whole thing was very low key. Really, not a bad thing--a non reported chance to be familar with a high stakes test.

I agree 100%!!!
DD took the ACT in 7th grade and the SAT in 8th grade.

 

[muscarello4]

Lots of my kids take the SAT for the TIP program. I truly just don't get it. I really just DON'T get the rush to stick them into a 5 hour test. I see highly gifted kids who are very stressed out on a daily basis. These kids are taking Saturday language school, Kumon, music lessons, etc. (Not to mention the kids who are heavily involved in sports.)

I am also the parent of a highly gifted kiddo. My student will absolutely not take the test. Why?

I am one who truly believes that it is a status symbol for the parents, as opposed to a meaningful learning opportunity for the child. Even if my kiddo scored high enough to be invited to Duke, there is no way that I would ship her off to study there. PUHLEEZ! She is 12 years old. Her summer can be spent swimming, biking, reading, and hanging out with family and friends.

She can study at Duke when she is a freshman in college, if she so chooses.

I'll just never get it, I guess.

 

[mistysue]

My middle school selected who was allowed to take it. I think I took it in '94.
I won a scholarship from the state for my scores that had to be used after graduating high school.

I don't know which, if any, states still do that but we didn't know that could happen before I did it.

Maybe this is why they are offering it?

 

[Green Tea]

Don't discount that the score might be good My ds scored higher than his cousin who was taking it as a senior for college admission.

I read back then that you could expect about a 400 point increase from the score as a 7th grader and when taken for real. That was about right in our case as well.

 

[Leajess99]

My 11 year old took the Explore test last year in 5th grade through Duke's TIP. She will take it again this year as I feel it is great practice and she did very well last year. It also helps to show what areas she can use more work in and what areas she excels in. It certainly cannot hurt to get the practice in and can help make them more comfortable when testing for college.

As for the individual who said it is a status symbol for parents, personally, my child taking the Explore test has no bearing on my "status". If my daughter wants to attend gifted courses or camp in the summer than I will pay for it but that is HER choice. I want my daughter to have all the opportunities in the world to succeed and get the best education she can get. She is a very bright child and through encouragement knows she can do anything she sets her mind to. Her doing well on a test has zero influence on my "status" and to me is not a status symbol. She is the same representative of her parents and herself whether she takes the test or not. The one thing she aims for is to score higher than her almost 17 year old brother did when he took it in the 8th grade.

 

[sharlon]

My 12 year old daughter just took the SAT for the Duke TIP program in December and we received her scores a couple of weeks ago. The paperwork we received prior to ever registering her for the SAT very specifically stated that the scores would be purged after they were sent to TIP. In fact, you had to request that not happen if you wanted the College Board to retain the scores.

I would also like to address the "status" symbol comment. My daughter ASKED to take the SAT. She is very driven and competitive. But, you know what, on Saturdays she plays basketball and hangs out with her friends. She does participate in a lot of activities through school, but nothing out of the ordinary and certainly nothing we have driven her to do. Everyting she does is by her choice. She has qualified to attend the Duke TIP summer program (which, BTW, is NOT held at Duke University, but at several other schools) and is begging to go. She actually asked if she could get a job so she could go to the program and do Algebra for 20 days.
I look at it this way, for a highly gifted kid, the test and the potential to spend part of a summer with other kids like them, is truly a great thing. So often these kids are shunned by classmates because they are geeky, weird, or too smart. Programs like TIP and others are a chance for many of these kids to fit in and just be one of the crowd. Even if it is only for 3 weeks.

 

[Anne34]

It is a qualifier for advanced academic opportunities through some colleges, so they might be pushing it for students they think might benefit from participation. I took it in 7th grade through Northwestern's talent search program and qualified for some summer enrichment programs and such because of my scores. It sounded like a neat program, but I wasn't willing to make the trade-offs to attend (it was pretty pricey and smack in the middle of summer swim season) so all I know is what was in the invitation/syllabus. I believe now they have some online opportunities as well, which I would have been all over if they'd been offered when I was that age!

My daughter in 6th grade is taking the SAT this Saturday throuthe Northwestern University program. She is my 3rd child to be doing this -- it is really interesting to see how they are doing at such a young age.

If nothing else, the testing experience is invaluable.

 

[Purseval]

My son got invited to a bunch of those programs: Duke, Stanford, MIT. To us they were nothing more than ways for the school to make money like they would off of any other summer camp. I'd love to see data on how many kids who attend those camps actually end up getting accepted at the schools.

He's now in the middle of his junior year at Georgia Tech. He only took the ACT once because it's not something used very much in our part of the country but he took the SATs several times, starting in his sophmore year of high school.

 

[Aristomommy]

Lots of my kids take the SAT for the TIP program. I truly just don't get it. I really just DON'T get the rush to stick them into a 5 hour test. I see highly gifted kids who are very stressed out on a daily basis. These kids are taking Saturday language school, Kumon, music lessons, etc. (Not to mention the kids who are heavily involved in sports.)

I am also the parent of a highly gifted kiddo. My student will absolutely not take the test. Why?

I am one who truly believes that it is a status symbol for the parents, as opposed to a meaningful learning opportunity for the child. Even if my kiddo scored high enough to be invited to Duke, there is no way that I would ship her off to study there. PUHLEEZ! She is 12 years old. Her summer can be spent swimming, biking, reading, and hanging out with family and friends.

She can study at Duke when she is a freshman in college, if she so chooses.

I'll just never get it, I guess.

I am glad that my child's gifted teacher is supportive of kids who truly enjoy this type of test and the benefits. Explore test was the reason DD got the accommodation she needed in school as a way of subject acceleration. Her teacher found it another piece of the puzzle when deciding the best options for DD. I have never forced DD to study, to take on the interests she has or joined any of the academic clubs she has this year. She is one of those kids who loves challenge and pushes herself.

The summer camps are a wonderful way to meet other gifted kids and explore their interests in a different way than in the formal educational setting. Many gifted kids feel isolated and different and crave the company of other kids like them. I also think there is a way to get a point across without bashing parents or being hurtful, btw.

 

[Desiree1972]

My 12 year old daughter just took the SAT for the Duke TIP program in December and we received her scores a couple of weeks ago. The paperwork we received prior to ever registering her for the SAT very specifically stated that the scores would be purged after they were sent to TIP. In fact, you had to request that not happen if you wanted the College Board to retain the scores.

I would also like to address the "status" symbol comment. My daughter ASKED to take the SAT. She is very driven and competitive. But, you know what, on Saturdays she plays basketball and hangs out with her friends. She does participate in a lot of activities through school, but nothing out of the ordinary and certainly nothing we have driven her to do. Everyting she does is by her choice. She has qualified to attend the Duke TIP summer program (which, BTW, is NOT held at Duke University, but at several other schools) and is begging to go. She actually asked if she could get a job so she could go to the program and do Algebra for 20 days.
I look at it this way, for a highly gifted kid, the test and the potential to spend part of a summer with other kids like them, is truly a great thing. So often these kids are shunned by classmates because they are geeky, weird, or too smart. Programs like TIP and others are a chance for many of these kids to fit in and just be one of the crowd. Even if it is only for 3 weeks.

I love her enthusiasm - and remember they do offer financial aid
and btw they also offer classes at Duke - there are different categories of classes/programs offered: Academy and Center. I believe qualifying for Academy leads to several different campuses while qualifying for Center leads to classes offered on the Duke campus.


hope this was helpful

eta - OP if you believe this will be a learning experience and not an aversive experience go for it. My Son greatly benefited from the exposure to the SAT
gl

 

[jsmith]

My sons both took the ACT and SAT as part of the university of Denvers TIP program-it was honestly a huge benefit-they both scored well enough in 9th grade-after practice runs in 7th and 8th grade-that the older did not take it again-and the younger only took it in 11th grade because it was required as part of the CSAP program. That meant that in jr and sr year when their peers were doing test prep they were focused on the college admissions process and taking college classes thru the colorado dual enrollment programs that the test results gave them access to.. Both had good success with college admissions and were able to choose from a number of top drawer universities in the areas they wanted to study-and both started college as sophomores. and those were a budget savings for us. Those test scores in 7th and 8th grade were a gateway for that even tho we didnt actually do any of the summer camps or special classes the programs themselves offered.

 

[SA53]

My 7th grade ds has had offers from Duke and Stanford since he was in 5th grade. He has been in the Gifted program since Kinder and loves every minute of it but I did not have him take the test for a couple of reasons. First off, he stresses out over all tests. He has never got less than 100 on any state or federal tests, but if he doesn't like them, why would I put him through that. Second, I am a crazy parent who likes to have my kids with me all summer, so I have not and will not take the summer school offers.

I talked to both of my sons Gifted teachers and they said that back in the day this was a good opportunity to become more comfortable with the test, but now they have so many opportunities in high school to take it that they did not think it served any purpose at this young age if I wasn't interested in sending him away during the summer. Not many of the Gifted kids took the test but some pre AP kids did.

In the end I let my son decide and since he doesn't like tests it was a no brainer for him.

I guess it is different for everyone. Good luck deciding. Our districts testing was way back in October!!

K in SA

 

[CJMickeyMouse]

My sons took the ACT multiple times starting in 6th grade. They laughed at the "white knuckle" kids who were seniors taking it for the first time. They will both be attending college at a school where academic awards are based 100% on ACT score when you reach the highest levels.

By the time the test "mattered" for them, it was a comfortable experience as they knew very well what to expect and how to handle the time constraints, breaks, etc.

Good luck to all the kids!

 

[Pigeon]

They do it because the schools just cannot get enough standardized testing.

 

[allison443]

My 12 year old daughter just took the SAT for the Duke TIP program in December and we received her scores a couple of weeks ago. The paperwork we received prior to ever registering her for the SAT very specifically stated that the scores would be purged after they were sent to TIP. In fact, you had to request that not happen if you wanted the College Board to retain the scores.

I would also like to address the "status" symbol comment. My daughter ASKED to take the SAT. She is very driven and competitive. But, you know what, on Saturdays she plays basketball and hangs out with her friends. She does participate in a lot of activities through school, but nothing out of the ordinary and certainly nothing we have driven her to do. Everyting she does is by her choice. She has qualified to attend the Duke TIP summer program (which, BTW, is NOT held at Duke University, but at several other schools) and is begging to go. She actually asked if she could get a job so she could go to the program and do Algebra for 20 days.
I look at it this way, for a highly gifted kid, the test and the potential to spend part of a summer with other kids like them, is truly a great thing. So often these kids are shunned by classmates because they are geeky, weird, or too smart. Programs like TIP and others are a chance for many of these kids to fit in and just be one of the crowd. Even if it is only for 3 weeks.

I agree with you!

My oldest dd took the SAT in 7th and 8th grade through the Johns Hopkins CTY program. (We are in the northeast where the SAT is more common than the ACT). In 5th and 6th she took the PLUS test which at that time was a test for 8th graders, also through Johns Hopkins. She doesn't stress on these tests and she wanted to take them. It was a great boost when she got her SAT scores and saw how they compared to the averages of high school seniors. Her school did not offer any gifted program. Oh, and by the way, she was also a competition cheerleader in elementary school

She attended the Johns Hopkins summer programs for four summers (it was offered at different college campuses throughout the northeast). She absolutely loved it. For her to take a three week intensive history class, and the way it was taught, together with the whole living experience, was heaven! We are very happy she went, just like she and our other kids have attended other programs for their interests, like a soccer camp, drama camp, play on certain sports teams, participate in other activities. I don't get why this is any different.