For
immediate information on a specific test or acronym, please click below:
ACT
AP
ASVAB
CAT
CEEB or High School Code
NHEIAP
NECAP
NWEA
PSAT
SAT
For
an overview, click on the topic below:
Testing Glossary, Overview,
and Registration Information
Who Should Take the Tests for
College Entrance?
When Should Students Begin Testing for
College?
What If We Cannot Afford Testing Fees?
Missed Registration Deadlines
Preparing for
Standardized College Testing
Test Day Issues: What to Bring,
Identification, Inclement Weather
***********************************************
Testing
Glossary, Overview, and Registration Information
ACT=
American College Testing program, given through ACT at various high school sites
in New Hampshire five times each year. (Occasionally, a Maine site might be the
closest for certain of our students.) Register through www.act.org
or get paper forms from the Guidance office. If registering directly on the internet
site, please remember to put in our school code: 300470. Failure to do so means
that the scores are not sent back to Coe-Brown and thus they are not on the student's
official transcript. The Writing portion of the ACT is optional, however many
colleges are now requiring it. Individuals should check with all potential colleges
to see whether or not the Writing will be needed.
AP=
Advanced Placement testing. These college-level assessments are administered in
accord with the national schedule from the College Board during two weeks in May.
Students currently enrolled in AP classes here at Coe-Brown are asked to take
the tests. Other interested students may discuss with their guidance counselors
participating in the testing.
ASVAB=
Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery, sponsored by the coalition of the
United States Armed Services is a test to determine strengths of individuals for
future career choices. Coe-Brown arranges to have this test given to any interested
juniors and seniors once a year in the fall on a Saturday. Once results are in,
an interpretation session is run during the school day. Completion of both segments
constitutes an optional Senior Portfolio requirement because of the assistance
it can give a student in assessing his or her strengths and interests in order
to determine potential career choices. Registration is through the guidance counselors
and the test is free.
CAT=
California Achievement Testing. These tests are administered to all freshmen and
juniors at Coe-Brown during May of each year. Juniors must pass a minimum competency
standard on the verbal and math portions of the test in order to graduate. Results
are returned to seniors at the outset of the school year, with instructions about
how to remediate any items which were not passed.
CEEB
or High School Code for Coe-Brown = 300470. It is the
number required on all registrations for the SAT and ACT in order for the student
scores to be reported back to Coe-Brown and be on student transcripts. If the
scores are not on the transcripts, students may have to pay to have scores sent
to colleges unless they put in the college code on the test registration form.
NECAP=
New England Common Assessment Program. This is now the test used to determine
"adequate yearly progress" for our school under the No Child Left Behind
Act. Pilot tests were run during the 2006-2007 year and the first test that "counted"
was given to juniors in October 2007 for English and Math and in May 2008 for
Science. A pilot test in Social Studies may also be required in the future.
NHEIAP=
New Hampshire Educational Improvement and Assessment Program. This testing program
was administered to all tenth graders through the Class of 2008. It has now been
discontinued.
NWEA=
Computer-based assessment in Language, Math, and Reading through the Northwest
Evaluation Association. These tests have been used recently in some of our sending
middle schools and will be implemented at Coe-Brown for freshmen and sophomores
in the fall of 2008.
PSAT=
Preliminary Scholastic Aptitude Test, sponsored by the College Board, given locally
at Coe-Brown on a Saturday once a year only in October in accord with the national
schedule. PSATs are also the qualifying test for the National Merit Scholarship
program. Information regarding PSAT's is given out to all juniors early in September
each year. Sophomores are also informed of this opportunity through presentations
in their English classes. Students first see their Guidance Counselors to obtain
the material and have their names put on the testing list. By the Friday before
the test, they must bring the testing fee directly to the counselor in cash or
in a check made out to Coe-Brown or CBNA. Results are disseminated directly to
the students in short study hall presentations in late November or early December.
SAT=
Scholastic Aptitude Test given through the College Board at various high school
sites in New Hampshire seven times each year. Students register on their own through
www.collegeboard.com
or pick up paper forms from Guidance office to complete and submit on their own.
Counselors are always available for assistance with the process if needed. If
registering directly on the internet site, please remember to put in our CEEB
code: 300470. Failure to do so means that the scores are not sent back to Coe-Brown
and thus they are not on the student's official transcript.
SAT Reasoning
tests= the former SAT I tests. Each test now includes three areas: Critical Reading,
Math, and Writing. These are each scored on a 200-800 scale.
SAT Subject tests
= individual tests concentrating on one subject only. Two or three of these may
be required by some of the most competitive colleges. (Check specific college
requirements to see if needed.) Results of SAT Subject tests may also be accepted
by some schools for placement purposes in certain courses.
Students
who register directly with SAT will also be sent test registration reminders directly
to e-mail accounts.
Who
Should Take the Tests for College Entrance?
Almost
all four-year colleges and some programs in two-year colleges (e.g. the Thompson
School at UNH) will require submission of either SAT or ACT scores.
If
a student believes that he or she will need test score results in the near future,
even if he does not plan to attend college directly after high school, it is a
good idea to test once while still in high school.
When Should Students Begin Testing for College?
Practice
for these tests begins with the PSAT's which are given only once a year as described
above. Students aiming for highly competitive colleges should take these as a
sophomore and then again as a junior.
We
recommend that students start taking SAT's or ACT's at least by spring of junior
year and the Junior Year Calendar sets forth
due dates for registration each year.
Most
serious college-bound students will test twice since a variety of factors might
influence performance at any one sitting.
What
If We Cannot Afford College Testing Fees?
Beginning
in the Fall of 2007, Coe-Brown will no longer be served by the Educational Talent
Search program which assisted our lower income students with waivers for the PSAT,
SAT and ACT programs. If a student would qualify for free or reduced lunch under
the federal program offered at local elementary schools, then s/he is eligible
for a fee waiver for testing for a maximum of two test sittings. If you are unsure
about whether or not you would qualify, or do indeed need a waiver, please see
your guidance counselor. We do not want a legitimate need for assistance to stand
in the way of a student's ability to test for college entrance.
Missed Registration Deadlines
First,
always register well before a deadline! If registering on-line, the websites often
get overloaded on deadline day due to the efforts of thousands of procrastinating
teens across the country and around the world!
However,
if the deadline was missed, or need for a test arises after the deadline passes,
there are options. Late registration is possible, for a substantial fee, for both
ACT and SAT. While this may cost over $22 to do, if it means that tests can be
obtained in time to meet certain application deadlines, it may be worth it to
you. In addition, Standby registration is also possible for cases in which the
need to test arises even after the late registration deadline has passed. All
such deadlines are on the testing websites, posted in the Guidance offices, and
cited in both the Senior Newsletters and the Junior
Year Calendar posted on this website.
Preparing for Standardized College Testing
Preparing
for testing required for college admissions begins with taking the most challenging
set of classes students can handle and taking them seriously! The need for a good
vocabulary is pervasive throughout the tests and can be enhanced not only by paying
attention to vocabulary assignments for all classes, but by selecting summer and
elective reading choices that have a high level of vocabulary as well. Math covered
includes all of Algebra I and Geometry as well as a few concepts from Algebra
II.
Studying
the pre-test materials available from the Guidance offices or on-line at the
testing websites is important. The College Board site offers an SAT Question of
the Day for practice. If a student took PSATs there is an access code on the results
that will link him or her to many valuable study materials. Even if a student
does not have time to do a complete practice test, s/he should review the format
and the testing pointers given in the materials.
SAT/ACT
Test Prep assistance is available to any Coe-Brown student through the Math
Lab run in each study hall every day or via an English teacher who will be presenting
comprehensive Test Prep workshops on a limited basis during several study halls
and after school. Students interested in availing themselves of this help should
contact the teacher in Math Lab which meets in the Honors study locale and listen
for announcements regarding Test Prep Workshops. Practice tests are taken on the
honor system and then students can work on weak areas with the appropriate teacher.
Test taking hints are also available. Students may opt for either the full "workshop"
which then counts as a Senior Portfolio optional component, or they may seek assistance
directly just for weak areas which have been revealed through earlier testing.
Test
preparation courses are available through a variety of vendors in the Concord
or Seacoast area. If this is something a student wishes to pursue, guidance counselors
have further information.
Test Day Issues: What to Bring, Identification, Inclement Weather
Always
face a test well-rested and having eaten breakfast!
Dress
in layers so that the vagaries of the testing room heating situation do not detract
from your concentration.
Be
clear about the directions to your testing site especially if you have never been
there before.
Bring:
Your admission/entrance ticket
Two number 2 pencils and a good eraser
Calculator (See www.collegeboard.com
or www.act.org for information
on acceptable calculators.)
Photo identification issued by school or government
(If you have neither, see your counselor prior to the test.)
Snacks for the
break times
What
if the weather is awful on testing day? In most cases here in New Hampshire, we
will have had a warning about this possibility. It is wise to call your test site
on the Friday before to find out how cancellation/ postponement of testing will
be advertised to the public. If you have any doubts about the weather, definitely
check before you go:
