PSAT plans?
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Anonymous
| Does anyone know if the PSAT will be offered this fall? If my DD’s high school does not offer it, is there another way for her to take it? |
Anonymous
| I think private high schools will offer it. Public high schools will not. Just another way that public’s will fall behind 😭 |
Anonymous
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No one can answer your question except for College Board.
Personally, I wonder if they might move the entire PSAT/NMSQT to winter or spring, depending on how the fall goes. They can't give one PSAT in the fall and one PSAT in the spring because that would ruin any hope of standardization (growth is expected over time). Or, they can allow alternate qualification via SAT score. |
Anonymous
| This has gotten almost no attention, but matters quite a bit. However, it matters quite a bit for disadvantaged students. For many, it’s there first exposure to the SAT. It’s usually given to EVERY student and allows schools to identify students that could benefit from help and mentoring. |
Anonymous
Yes. Our high school also used it for placement in some senior AP classes (public school), and it identifies kids who would not have otherwise considered those classes. |
Anonymous
| It’s also used in 11th grade for NMSF. Obviously a very small pool of students, but if they are able to get a qualifying SAT or ACT score along with it, it could mean a lot of $$$$$ for college |
Anonymous
| Imagine a situation in which 60% of students can take the PSAT. But 40% won't be able to due to local safety concerns. Do they administer the PSAT in that case? |
Anonymous
That’s the situation right now with the sat. |
Anonymous
Yes, but unlike the SAT, the PSAT is a way for students to qualify for National Merit Scholarships |
Anonymous
My guess is that they won't end up doing it in Oct. They can't just take one of those three administrations and move it to spring. All three need to occur around the same time. |
Anonymous
Yup. Hard to go "test optional" for National Merit consideration. |
Anonymous
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My guess is that they might do two sittings, one for juniors, one for sophomores. Sophomores aren’t in the NMSF pool, so they could take a second administration at a later date, if it’s possible. They might also move it to a weekend or do an early release day or day off for schools in person. Spread kids out, us the gym and cafeteria, put on masks, and have the teachers proctor with only the junior class in the school. Or even do an am or pm administration to further dedensify and only have 1/8 of the students there. Put 6-8 in a room with one teacher.
It may be a year they don’t administer to sophomores in the traditional way. The college board could give 10th graders a free sitting of the PSAT at any SAT Administration site their sophomore year and just reserve a room or two for PSAT. But honestly, I’m not sure how much good the sophomore PSAT does— especially for kids who aren’t on the advanced math track. They announce NMSF a full year after kids take it. But, these are scantron forms. They don’t really need very long. If push comes to shove, they could wait until May. No juniors are disadvantaged if they all take it all at once. |
Anonymous
I always thought the PSAT was given in 10th grade in FFC. |
Anonymous
Many schools give PSAT in 10th, either in the fall along with the juniors or in Feb (PSAT10), purely for practice and exposure. However, ONLY the junior year PSAT counts for National Merit. |
Anonymous
| I used to think they would just delay it to the Spring, but, I think a lot of schools in this area are going to be completely online for the entire 2020-2021 school year (looking at you DCPS, MCPS and FCPS). Maybe PSAT (and national merit competition) will just be cancelled for this year's Juniors). |