Anonymous wrote:OP here. 7th grade algebra. Not 6th grade… he is going to middle school. He panicked big time in the IAAT and literally skipped questions entirely. He is otherwise an awesome math student.

Sounds like he should get his anxiety under control. Is he going for TJ or something?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My 6th grade child got an 87 IAAT and 525 SOL. All 4s in math and everything else… Teacher loves him and he’s a top 5 student in his math class. Do you think still appeal despite the Iowa ? How do we do that? We will ask the teacher to appeal for him but I remember him saying kids should get 550 or higher. My child is super upset on his SOL despite having a good score because he was aiming for the 550…

You might be SOL.

I would appeal. Contact the middle school and inquire about the process.

My experience with the appeals process: My DD scored an 88 on the Iowa and a 600 on the Math 7 SOL in the 6th grade. I emailed her middle school inquiring about the appeals process. Her middle school agreed to consider an appeal because her Iowa score was within the 5 percentile margin of error and she passed advance on the SOL. We had to write a letter sharing why we felt she was ready for Algebra 1 honors in grade 7 and she also had to take an additional assessment at the middle school (in mid-July), which was a combination of both IAAT and SOL skills. We also asked her 6th grade math teacher to write a letter of support as well.

My understanding is that each school may have a slightly different appeals process. You will need to reach out to the middle school.

She did not find the class to be that difficult, but she is a hard worker and has high executive functioning. Just finished the class with 105%.

I am the previous poster whose child scored 99% on the IAAT and 486 on the SOL. I am trying to understand what the appeals process is at this point. Is there a possibility that he will be placed in the Algebra 1 class without me contacting the school because of the high IAAT? Or do I need to let the school know that I want to appeal the decision because he definitely won’t be placed in?

I'm not a fan of the fearmongering over Algebra in 7th. OP, if you think your kid is genuinely good at math, but had a bad day for either the SOL or IAAT, it might be worth trying for Algebra. Here are a few things to consider:
-Does your child have high executive function and are they organized?
-Is your child a motivated, hard worker?
-Does your child enjoy being challenged?
-Does your child love math and want to take a year of post-AP calc classes?
-Is your kid generally scoring around the 98th percentile or higher in iready?

If the answer to all of these is 'yes,' then I wouldn't be too worried about pushing for Algebra.

Honestly OP, I don't think it's a great idea to push it. My son got 535 SOL, and 96 percentile IAAT. He got an A- in Algebra in 7th and barely got B+ in Geometry in 8th, working incredibly hard and with a ton of stress, pushing hard for an A with the awareness that he probably couldn't swing it. Now he says he doesn't think he is great at math, even though it was always his easiest subject. If your kid was that far from the IAAT threshold, it's probably a bad idea to push Algebra in 7th. Not because of Algebra, but the classes further down the road.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Can someone explain why kids need to take algebra in 7th? I took Algebra in 9th and AP Calculus in 12th and have a phD in mechanical engineering. Not sure what taking Algebra in 7th would have done to change my schooling and career path?

Take a look at the stats of admitted engineering students in the DMV.

This would be interesting. Do the stats include list of highest math class taken? Link?

Anonymous wrote:Not with that IAAT.

+1

Anonymous wrote:Can someone explain why kids need to take algebra in 7th? I took Algebra in 9th and AP Calculus in 12th and have a phD in mechanical engineering. Not sure what taking Algebra in 7th would have done to change my schooling and career path?

Take a look at the stats of admitted engineering students in the DMV.

Anonymous wrote:My child this year scored 99% on the IAAT, and 486 on the SOL. I am thinking about appealing.

Guessing others in this boat as well where one or the other score is off. My reason for appealing is that my child really enjoys the challenge and already knows a ton of algebra. He did freak on the IOWA because there was too much discussion and pressure surrounding it and panicked not even guessing on some questions and leaving blank. Yet he excels in the classroom and gets straight 4s. I have no doubt he would rock at Algebra. I will try, and if the appeal doesn’t work, that’s ok too. He will be fine regardless.

Anonymous wrote:Can someone explain why kids need to take algebra in 7th? I took Algebra in 9th and AP Calculus in 12th and have a phD in mechanical engineering. Not sure what taking Algebra in 7th would have done to change my schooling and career path?

Because others are doing it and you look less competitive?

I know of kids who start in Algebra1 but then fell back to grade7 hn because Algebra was too hard.

Anonymous wrote:My 6th grade child got an 87 IAAT and 525 SOL. All 4s in math and everything else… Teacher loves him and he’s a top 5 student in his math class. Do you think still appeal despite the Iowa ? How do we do that? We will ask the teacher to appeal for him but I remember him saying kids should get 550 or higher. My child is super upset on his SOL despite having a good score because he was aiming for the 550…

You might be SOL.

My child this year scored 99% on the IAAT, and 486 on the SOL. I am thinking about appealing.

DD’s school has plenty of kids in Algebra I that scored below the threshold on IAAT, SOL, or both. Someone she knows got in with an IAAT in the low 80s and SOL around 450, on appeal. He did fine in Algebra I but struggled in Geometry (as did a lot of kids).