WPPSI - Caught Cheating?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

I assure you, there is no exam in which a well prepared and studied pupil will not have encountered similar questions and concepts (for the bulk of the test). After all, how does one master content and subject matter without prior exposure and study? Yes, if any teacher asked me whether I had seen similar questions, concepts, content in any exam I prepared for why would I be ashamed of admitting so, if this were the case? I'm not ashamed to claim I am an avid reader and problem solver. What's the big deal here. We are talking about educating children. I guess you would since you are a genius and you prefer to study anonymously and have folk foolishly think you get 99% without any prior exposure or studying. You were born with your intellectual neuronal network already laid down!

If you have books and blocks, color boards and computers, polygons and puzzles, pen and paper in your home it's sounds like this is off limits to your children since they would be perennial cheaters, forever condemned to hell. But, then again, since you were raised not to cheat you're an illiterate simpleton in the 99.9 percentile.

Touche.

It's one thing to already have educational items in your home in an effort to keep your child intellectually stimulated.

It's cheating when you specifically research and order wppsi materials (blocks, tests, tutors) to game the system a few months before your child's test date with the intent of prepping. Would you turn red if your child said to the tester behind closed doors, "yes we have been working on the test at home, but it's a secret and I'm not supposed to tell you that."

[Anonymous]

Alot of genius envy here...

[Anonymous]

No I would not turn red. In my household education is a full time past time...not simply because you have an exam tomorrow or in 2 weeks. Therefore, impending examinations are really taken in stride. Absolutely no need to steal the exact exam ahead of time. No fretting over any exam since the children love to learn, read and play challenging games and exercises...like their parents still do. Do you have a problem with families who value education or learning even if it makes taking exams like WPPSI or the SAT a piece of cake. I know some families whose children are star lacrosse players...and not from reclining in bed...but practice and exposure to lacrosse. I guess by you, come try out time, these guys and gals are cheating too? Shame on them, no fair and to hell with them.

What do you do in your household since educational material is banned and considered cheating? Chance favors the prepared mind (or body). I'm not buying your pretentious morality.

[Anonymous]

7:55, I am confused by your point. If you aren't prepping with the materials used in the exam, why are you so defensive? There's no one here saying that educational games and toys are cheating. Either you are misunderstanding our point or fudging what you are actually playing with your kids.

[Anonymous]

I can understand your confusion since you are not familiar with exams like WPPSI,SSAT, ERB and SAT. A reasonably educated student does not need to steal and practice with the exact exam (or blocks or polygons or mazes) to hit these exams out of the park. It simply requires repetitive exposure and practice with similar concepts and exercises. Educated parents know this. You don't need eBay or NY materials to hit exams like this right out of the park. All the materials needed to accomplish this goal reside in the minds and homes of highly educated D.C. parents. This is not rocket science, though some of you behave as if this is quantum physics. Chance favors the prepared mind. Consultants, eBay, stealing the exam, pimping your psychologist roommate are really not necessary. But, the insecure and confused take this route. Others seem to think they are pure since they did not go the eBay or the consultant route and therefore their "uneducated and unprepped" child simply woke up from a deep sleep and after a nourishing breakfast scored 99.9 percentile --- as if this is some great accomplishment coming from educated homes where children are daily exposed ("prepped") with similar content material and concepts on these exams. But, of course what we do in our homes is not "prepping" since the God fairy dropped off the computers, software, books and board games, legos, puzzles and work books, for our pleasure and leisure ... and, my ghosh, not for the purposes of WPPSI and/or SAT exam coming down the pike. While these deluded individuals point fingers of immorality and cheating at those that order their educational material from eBay!

The confused actually believe that reasonable people swallow this hogwash.

[Anonymous]

8:01 again. Of course I'm familiar with all those tests. You seem to be condemning the same practices I am, so why the anger? Honestly, I don't understand your point. If you are saying that raising children in an enriching environment is enough "prep", I agree with you. If you are saying that there is no difference between providing an enriching environment for your child and buying previous exams on Ebay, I don't agree with you at all. If you're just trying to pick a fight and establish that you are somehow raising brighter children than the rest of us, have fun with that.

You left an important element out of your litany. General play, as in pretend play, is far more important to a child's intellectual development than workbooks or rote learning. It is through play that children develop creativity and problem-solving skills. Check out this week's Time magazine article on the subject.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:7:55, I am confused by your point. If you aren't prepping with the materials used in the exam, why are you so defensive? There's no one here saying that educational games and toys are cheating. Either you are misunderstanding our point or fudging what you are actually playing with your kids.

I am not the poster you directed your question to but a few pages back a poster was saying that it was wrong to use books such as Brainquest which you can buy at book stores, which is ridiculous. She couldn't understand that some children like to do the activities and mazes in it for fun. Those books have nothing to do with the WPPSI and are not prepping.

[Anonymous]

"You left an important element out of your litany. General play, as in pretend play, is far more important to a child's intellectual development than workbooks or rote learning. It is through play that children develop creativity and problem-solving skills. Check out this week's Time magazine article on the subject."


What is prepping (formal or informal) since you love the game of nuance? Neither you nor Time magazine is an expert on raising children. Therefore, if you feel better that folk not call you a prepper when you and your children explore for fun the wonderful playing fields of learning with materials not purchased from eBay but for fun and creative games around your kitchen table feel free to substitute any agreeable euphemism.

[Anonymous]

Fine, call me a prepper because I let my kids play. In my mind this all reduces distinctions to meaninglessness, but I see thats what you want to do. So I guess I must utilize the description "I didn't buy materials specifically for the test off Ebay nor did I hire a tutor nor did I have my children do specific activities to improve his test scores," rather than the easier, and I believe perfectly clear, phrase "I didn't prepare my child for the test."

It really isn't difficult to make distinctions here because the people who administer the test make them. If you have to lie to them, you've crossed a specific line.

No, I'm not any more of an expert in raising children than others (the Time article, by the way, does quote experts who have studied these questions). I don't think you need any expertise to draw these distinctions. If you have to lie (and I am not saying playing with "educational" games qualifies here) you shouldn't do it. My ten year old gets that one.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:No I would not turn red. In my household education is a full time past time...not simply because you have an exam tomorrow or in 2 weeks. Therefore, impending examinations are really taken in stride. Absolutely no need to steal the exact exam ahead of time. No fretting over any exam since the children love to learn, read and play challenging games and exercises...like their parents still do. Do you have a problem with families who value education or learning even if it makes taking exams like WPPSI or the SAT a piece of cake. I know some families whose children are star lacrosse players...and not from reclining in bed...but practice and exposure to lacrosse. I guess by you, come try out time, these guys and gals are cheating too? Shame on them, no fair and to hell with them.

What do you do in your household since educational material is banned and considered cheating? Chance favors the prepared mind (or body). I'm not buying your pretentious morality.

Who's being pretentious, PP?

Let kids be kids. Education is a full time past time?

You're fooling yourself.

[Anonymous]

Not at all. I guess that's why you're here.

[Anonymous]

No thanks. I'll keep my kids and their preferences.

I hope that neither offends you nor their academic success. You can raise your kids in the manner you prefer.

[Anonymous]

I have absolutely no problem purchasing a workbook which contains questions in the same format as the WPPSI, nor do I have any problem in purchasing the blocks and using those as fun/learning exercises for my child, which may also be helpful on this test.

In all of this debate, no one seems to place any blame on the schools for using a 10-year old, compromised exam which IS readily available, which is being coached by highly-paid tutors, etc.

The schools are 100% aware of the prepping/coaching/cheating, yet change nothing.

How hard is it for the schools to come up with a 45 minute exam of their own and to change it each year? They are supposed vto be educational institutions, but cant avoid using a screening tool which can be purchased by the wealthy or connected??

[Anonymous]

That is my point precisely. It's not rocket science to come up with strategies to mimic a simple and unchanging test .... whether you go on eBay, do it subconsiously for "leisure and pleasure kid activities", hire a professional consultant or use one's resourceful common sense. Therefore, why this hand wringing talk about morality. It all seems rather disingenuous. Why even attempt to draw a moral line in the sand. The irony is that those drawing the line in the sand are the same peacocks shopping for the just the "right tester".

[Anonymous]

You're right. They all act confused about what is obvious. Caught red handed...very difficult to admit since it blows the 99% cover.