ACT Multiple Day Testing

[Anonymous]

Can anyone with experience talk about how this works? Do you take one section a day? Do you take it in the mornings? One right after the other, etc.

Thanks!

[Anonymous]

Anyone?

[Anonymous]

OP have you tried posting your question on the Schools and Education forum?

I have a 16 yr old but he's not going to take the ACT or SAT - likely start at community college.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP have you tried posting your question on the Schools and Education forum?

I have a 16 yr old but he's not going to take the ACT or SAT - likely start at community college.

Multiple day testing is usually for kids with IEP or 504 so thought I'd start here. I'll try one of the other forums. Thanks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP have you tried posting your question on the Schools and Education forum?

I have a 16 yr old but he's not going to take the ACT or SAT - likely start at community college.

Multiple day testing is usually for kids with IEP or 504 so thought I'd start here. I'll try one of the other forums. Thanks.

I hope I didn't come across too harshly. I just thought that a lot of the parents on the SN forum have kids on the younger side, and that you'd get more eyeballs on the other forum. Good luck!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can anyone with experience talk about how this works? Do you take one section a day? Do you take it in the mornings? One right after the other, etc.

Thanks!

The schools are given a lot of flexibility on how it is administered, and it is also influenced by your child's specific accommodations. You should talk to the person who manages your child's IEP/504.

My friend's child did this, and took half the test one morning, and half the next. So 2 sections per day.

[Anonymous]

I am a SAT/ACT tutor. I have seen some of my students have this multi-day testing. I've only seen it with private schools. I've heard of instances of some public schools which have refused to give it because "we don't do that," which is illegal, but that is another thread. I have not seen a parent get multi-day testing for SAT/ACT in public school (not saying it doesn't happen), but I have seen a student get multi-day testing for school district tests (like finals or PARCC) due to medical issues.

In the few instances, I've seen multi-day ACT testing, the private school has arranged it on successive days with 2 sections max per day. Students taking the essay have been offered the option to take that on a 3rd day. The private school typically has a "learning coordinator" who knows how this is set-up and will provide all the information if you ask -- what days, what times, what breaks, what sections in what order, etc.

Basically, it appears to me that schools have a lot of flexibility to administer the multi-day test in a way they feel is appropriate to the student. They have a certain window within with to complete the testing -- something like 2 weeks-ish. So, if you need something special -- to be allowed a snack or to take in afternoon instead of morning or vice-versa, you should ask (as long as there's some justification).

You definitely should NOT have to take the ACT in addition to a normal school day. If a school suggests this, please complain. That wouldn't be appropriate. Kids are usually wiped afterwards, and doing homework/classwork on top of the ACT is not fair.

OP, can you please post back what your experience is? How did you apply? Are you in private or public? What documentation did you need to have? Did you get it on the first ask? Did you have this accommodation on your IEP/504?

Any details you can share are useful to other LD parents. There are few special ed parents who get this type of testing and it's not the kind of thing parents usually discuss face to face and often school is not helpful. ACT has a fair amount of documentation on their website about how to apply, but not much about test administration. Even though I work with a fair number of LD students over the years, even I have a small sample size from which to draw generalities about test administration. So, if you can pay it forward by sharing after also, that would be a great resource for all!

[Anonymous]

My child attended a public hs in Virginia and took the ACT two different times. Both times the test was administered over multiple days. The school worked with us to choose the days and times but I believe they must give the test within a certain number of days that the standard test is given. Our times were also dependent upon the availbility of their qualified proctor. I remember that one test was given over subsequent weekends. We did have some say in how it was divided but the test must be given in a specific order.

Talk with someone in your child's guidance or testing department and they can explain how it works. I suggest you contact them asap and verify what the accommodations are that your child will receive. There is lots of room for miscommunication in the process.

[Anonymous]

For anyone who is curious, the situation is, for the most part, the same if your child takes the SAT over multiple days. From what I recall though, the College Board is less flexible about the range of dates in which the test must be given and students are more likely to be in a situation where the test is administered at school. We were lucky and had the test administered on a Saturday and Sunday.

[Anonymous]

I’m 22:08. It was a public school in DC. Student had a 504.

[Anonymous]

My kid with ADHD inattentive, and both physical and mental health problems took the ACT with double time over multiple days. He did it at his public school over the summer and went in every day for a week and worked 1:1 with a teacher proctoring. I think he could have taken 2 weeks, but he didn’t need it. There were multiple kids taking it, and the proctor just set it up so each came in at a different time. I don’t know if any kids shared, my kid had accommodations that necessitated 1:1.

We looked into SAT but SAT only offers 2 day testing, and we felt the multi day was better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My kid with ADHD inattentive, and both physical and mental health problems took the ACT with double time over multiple days. He did it at his public school over the summer and went in every day for a week and worked 1:1 with a teacher proctoring. I think he could have taken 2 weeks, but he didn’t need it. There were multiple kids taking it, and the proctor just set it up so each came in at a different time. I don’t know if any kids shared, my kid had accommodations that necessitated 1:1.

We looked into SAT but [b]SAT only offers 2 day testing, and we felt the multi day was better.

Just want to say - the bold is illegal. Who said “they only offer 2 day testing” - the school or the College Board? CB is obliged, just like the school is, to make and independent evaluation of the student’s disability and needs. They can develop a menu of accommodations and offer them and if it fits a students needs, then fine. But, if it doesn’t, then CB is legally obliged to offer a reasonable accommodation that is individualized. They also can’t decline to do so because “it’s expensive”, “it wouldn’t be fair to other kids”, “we don’t have a proctor for that” etc. The fact that ACT manages to do more than 2 day testing means SAT can too.

Please write a letter to the head of CB and point out they are not comiant with federal disability law. These are major money making companies who must and can afford to provide access for the disabled and have a history of not doing so until sued.

While it is true that schools accept the ACT now and you can just choose to use the competitor’s product, there can be advantages to the SAT timeline and the way SAT reports scores, just like there are similar advantages for ACT.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My kid with ADHD inattentive, and both physical and mental health problems took the ACT with double time over multiple days. He did it at his public school over the summer and went in every day for a week and worked 1:1 with a teacher proctoring. I think he could have taken 2 weeks, but he didn’t need it. There were multiple kids taking it, and the proctor just set it up so each came in at a different time. I don’t know if any kids shared, my kid had accommodations that necessitated 1:1.

We looked into SAT but SAT only offers 2 day testing, and we felt the multi day was better.

Just want to say - the bold is illegal. Who said “they only offer 2 day testing” - the school or the College Board? CB is obliged, just like the school is, to make and independent evaluation of the student’s disability and needs. They can develop a menu of accommodations and offer them and if it fits a students needs, then fine. But, if it doesn’t, then CB is legally obliged to offer a reasonable accommodation that is individualized. They also can’t decline to do so because “it’s expensive”, “it wouldn’t be fair to other kids”, “we don’t have a proctor for that” etc. The fact that ACT manages to do more than 2 day testing means SAT can too.

Please write a letter to the head of CB and point out they are not comiant with federal disability law. These are major money making companies who must and can afford to provide access for the disabled and have a history of not doing so until sued.

While it is true that schools accept the ACT now and you can just choose to use the competitor’s product, there can be advantages to the SAT timeline and the way SAT reports scores, just like there are similar advantages for ACT.

Oops clearly, I bolded wrong just meant to bold the “SAT only offers 2 day testing.” Hard to do on little phone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am a SAT/ACT tutor. I have seen some of my students have this multi-day testing. I've only seen it with private schools. I've heard of instances of some public schools which have refused to give it because "we don't do that," which is illegal, but that is another thread. I have not seen a parent get multi-day testing for SAT/ACT in public school (not saying it doesn't happen), but I have seen a student get multi-day testing for school district tests (like finals or PARCC) due to medical issues.

In the few instances, I've seen multi-day ACT testing, the private school has arranged it on successive days with 2 sections max per day. Students taking the essay have been offered the option to take that on a 3rd day. The private school typically has a "learning coordinator" who knows how this is set-up and will provide all the information if you ask -- what days, what times, what breaks, what sections in what order, etc.

Basically, it appears to me that schools have a lot of flexibility to administer the multi-day test in a way they feel is appropriate to the student. They have a certain window within with to complete the testing -- something like 2 weeks-ish. So, if you need something special -- to be allowed a snack or to take in afternoon instead of morning or vice-versa, you should ask (as long as there's some justification).

You definitely should NOT have to take the ACT in addition to a normal school day. If a school suggests this, please complain. That wouldn't be appropriate. Kids are usually wiped afterwards, and doing homework/classwork on top of the ACT is not fair.

OP, can you please post back what your experience is? How did you apply? Are you in private or public? What documentation did you need to have? Did you get it on the first ask? Did you have this accommodation on your IEP/504?

Any details you can share are useful to other LD parents. There are few special ed parents who get this type of testing and it's not the kind of thing parents usually discuss face to face and often school is not helpful. ACT has a fair amount of documentation on their website about how to apply, but not much about test administration. Even though I work with a fair number of LD students over the years, even I have a small sample size from which to draw generalities about test administration. So, if you can pay it forward by sharing after also, that would be a great resource for all!

This is exactly what my DS school RTSE told us we would get if my child took the multi-day ACT. I was very mad and when I complained and said that was not appropriate for my child, the attitude I got was "take it or leave it, this is how we do things". They were not willing to budge. I have been told that you can check around with other schools to find out if they would accommodate a student who does not attend their school. Apparently, as long as the test is administered within the 2 week period, the ACT has no requirements on how it is implemented. Basically, schools can get away with whatever they want.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I am a SAT/ACT tutor. I have seen some of my students have this multi-day testing. I've only seen it with private schools. I've heard of instances of some public schools which have refused to give it because "we don't do that," which is illegal, but that is another thread. I have not seen a parent get multi-day testing for SAT/ACT in public school (not saying it doesn't happen), but I have seen a student get multi-day testing for school district tests (like finals or PARCC) due to medical issues.

In the few instances, I've seen multi-day ACT testing, the private school has arranged it on successive days with 2 sections max per day. Students taking the essay have been offered the option to take that on a 3rd day. The private school typically has a "learning coordinator" who knows how this is set-up and will provide all the information if you ask -- what days, what times, what breaks, what sections in what order, etc.

Basically, it appears to me that schools have a lot of flexibility to administer the multi-day test in a way they feel is appropriate to the student. They have a certain window within with to complete the testing -- something like 2 weeks-ish. So, if you need something special -- to be allowed a snack or to take in afternoon instead of morning or vice-versa, you should ask (as long as there's some justification).

You definitely should NOT have to take the ACT in addition to a normal school day. If a school suggests this, please complain. That wouldn't be appropriate. Kids are usually wiped afterwards, and doing homework/classwork on top of the ACT is not fair.

OP, can you please post back what your experience is? How did you apply? Are you in private or public? What documentation did you need to have? Did you get it on the first ask? Did you have this accommodation on your IEP/504?

Any details you can share are useful to other LD parents. There are few special ed parents who get this type of testing and it's not the kind of thing parents usually discuss face to face and often school is not helpful. ACT has a fair amount of documentation on their website about how to apply, but not much about test administration. Even though I work with a fair number of LD students over the years, even I have a small sample size from which to draw generalities about test administration. So, if you can pay it forward by sharing after also, that would be a great resource for all!

This is exactly what my DS school RTSE told us we would get if my child took the multi-day ACT. I was very mad and when I complained and said that was not appropriate for my child, the attitude I got was "take it or leave it, this is how we do things". They were not willing to budge. I have been told that you can check around with other schools to find out if they would accommodate a student who does not attend their school. Apparently, as long as the test is administered within the 2 week period, the ACT has no requirements on how it is implemented. Basically, schools can get away with whatever they want.

Does your school system open its doors to neurotypical students on weekend days for SAT or ACT testing - then they must do the same for your disabled student.

Write an email to both the head of special education and the county-wide Section 504 Supervisor. Be factual. State what you requested as an accommodation. State what the response was from he RTSE - what did they offer, what did they still refuse to offer after you pointed out that it was not appropriate for your student. State that forcing disabled students to test on the weekday during or after school is discriminatory. It forces a burden on didabled students that no -disabled students do not have to bear - attending school and keeping up with school while at the same time doing high stakes college testing. Even if the school excuses the child from all attendance and making up any work, forcing a disabled student to test on the weekend is still discriminatory because it unnecessarily excludes the disabled child from participating in class and benefitting from instruction.

Public school systems already have procedures in place to test on weekends, do Sunday testing for those who can’t test on Saturday and have the power to open schools and pay test proctors.

I guarantee if parents complain at the top level, the school system will fix this (although it may take them some time). This is a lawsuit waiting to happen. Schools can only get away with breaking the law when we let them.