
Affluent parents were paying for outside enrichment and test prep that sometimes included questions/answers from previous tests. This gave their kids an unfair advantage. For quant-Q, the kids agreed to an NDA. It’s unethical, perhaps even illegal, for them to share details about the test with test prep companies who used the info for their own commercial purposes. The school board changed the admissions process multiple times because of the unfair and/or unethical behavior of some families. |
If you're posting this, you have absolutely no idea how large-scale admissions testing works in practice. |
*THIS!!* |
This is excuse making by families with stupid kids. |
It was pay to play cheating, and I for one am glad the board of education put an end to it. |
Studying is not cheating. Trying to have secret tests is extremely stupid, I can't believe anyone bought that line of thinking. If your kids cannot achieve academically, maybe they're just not smart. |
PSAT math scores would be the ideal test. Free prep is available for everyone. If it was possible that prep would guarantee a high score, way more high schoolers would be scoring in the 1500's on the PSAT/SAT. Students with the highest level of math form each middle school should receive bonus points. Any student in Algebra 2 or higher in middle school will run out of options for math classes at their local high school. I'm not saying automatically admit anyone with higher levels of math, just give bonus points the same way bonus points are given for ELL and FARMS. This will help identify students from each middle school who have already proven to be advanced in math without giving 100% preference for these students. Math SOL scores should also be looked at. Any student who hasn't passed advanced on the math SOL in 7th grade is not ready for the rigor of TJHSST. All students have access to SOL Pass through FCPS. |
No outside testing. Just use SOLs as data points. We don't want to encourage families to game the system. |
I know, but the paid prep is so much better that it would again be advantageous to those who can afford it. However, at leat it isn't as bad as people buying the test questions. |
Are you under the impression that you can't study for the SOLs? Also, studying is not "gaming the system" That is just something parents with kids that don't study tell themselves so they can continue to think they are good parents despite the fact their kids don't study. |
Nobody bought test questions. If you have to lie to make your point, then you don't actually ave a point., Studying is not cheating. The fact that you think studying is cheating might be why some kids aren't doing as well as they could. |
My TJ kid always “studied” whatever was needed to get solid As in the classes she was taking in school. What she did not do was non-school math. That means she was “only” on the Alg 1 in 7th track as out AAP center didn’t really do Alg in 6th. I support using SOLs. It would be an objective measure and tied to kids doing well in school offered math including the typical advanced tracks via school. |
The evidence that some families paid for outside prep where their children were given access to question banks which included many of the test questions. This is a matter of record and there is 0 doubt that this went on. The evidence has been posted here more times than I can count. |
I get it, you want "your kid" to be the standard. But the standard is not "your kid" n the standard is (or should be) excellence. If you make SOLs the criteria for TJ admissions, what makes you think people won't start studying for SOLs? We will start seeing large populations of perfect SOL scores. There is NO method of evaluation that people will not be able to improve through effort and trying to remove the benefits of effort seems like a fool's game. The PSAT is a better method because the prep is so well understood that a cursory search of the internet will provide a lot of free material It's not as good as having a tutor hold your hand through the process but in the end, you take the test, not your tutor. YOU have to master the material. This is why we don't see differences between poor and rich kids with the same SAT score in colleges. https://opportunityinsights.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/SAT_ACT_on_Grades.pdf |
There is no "record" of kids getting access to the questions before the test. You have linked social media posts by woke high school students admitting to their "wealth privilege" in being able to "prep" for the test. If you believe that a social media post by a teenage girl trying to virtue signal has "zero doubt" then you are an idiot. Social media posts are not "the record" If this really happened, it would be news. No news articles say what you are saying. When you have to lie to make your point, you might not have a point to make. |