WHY DO THIS SURVEY?

1.       To make it easier for kids at MVHS to get into their college of choice as painlessly as possible.   Our goal:  more happy faces on April 1!

2.       We are constantly hit up by SAT/ACT prep companies who beg “PLEASE OFFER OUR COURSE AT MVHS.”

3.       Should we offer a course here at MV?   Are some courses so much better than others that they really stand above the competition?

4.       Are some courses so awful we should avoid them like the plague?

5.       For the two minute answer: basically all the courses are fine.   As a parent, you need to match your child to the course that best suits his/her personality and needs along with your budget!

From self study to a private tutor who comes to your door, IT CAN ALL WORK!  Not everyone needs a class.  Factors to consider:

1.       Does your child do well on standardized tests, such that his/her test scores  are much higher than grades?

2.       Maybe your child only needs a bit of help in one specific area, such as math.

3.       What is your child planning to do after high school, apply to a highly competitive university, or other?

4.       Maybe you have that self starter who will go to their bedroom and crank out practice test after practice test and needs no additional help.

Survey Facts

There are 645 seniors, 448 of them participated in the survey (70%).  Of course, my survey results are based only on the results of the kids who answered the survey

Kids did not answer every question.  Sometimes they answered a question and then skipped some questions; as a result, the survey results do not always seem to add up.  There is still enough good data, in my opinion, to see trends

Results

1.       Kids overwhelmingly say Start taking Practice Tests in you Sophomore Year

2.       Look at the ACT it may be your easier option- you could start by taking the practice SAT/ ACT combo test offered at MVHS next Fall or Spring.  Help your child follow the path of least resistance; if one test is a lot easier and the colleges he/she is looking at accepts it CONSIDER  THE EASY ROUTE.

3.       If you want to go to a UC you will need 2 SAT II subject tests (in different areas).  You need to plan for these in you curriculum and take the subject tests in May or June of the year you finish the course!

4.       I think we need to add AP World History at MV- so sophomores have the opportunity to get one SAT II out of the way prior to junior year

5.       Interestingly, the SATII in Literature is the  third most popular SAT II after Math II C and US History.  This is somewhat surprising since AP Literature is offered only to seniors at MV

6.       Generally,  kids take the SAT I two times and their scores usually go up!

7.       Kids with good private tutors seem the happiest overall.  Not that their scores seemed to go up that much more than other kids, but they seem to do more of their homework (could it be because they have a private tutor- they feel more obliged to do their homework?).  The kids seem to know how they will do on a test prior to taking it.  Overall,  these kids  are more likely to rate their instructor as “good” or “excellent”.

8.       There were between 20-30 kids who prepped for the SAT/ACT in four our more ways, such as Kaplan, Princeton Review, Chinn, private tutor, and self study.  Their scores did not go up by more than kids who took one course.  It seems to me there is a point of diminishing returns on SAT/ ACT prep!  That is good to know prior to investing additional time, money and energy.

9.       When the kids were asked “If you had to start over and do it again what would you do differently?”, here are the replies I got OVER, AND OVER, AND OVER AGAIN

a.       Study More

b.      Do my course homework

c.       Start Earlier

10.   I will close with my favorite student quote from this survey: “Get an early start at practice tests offered at MVHS to understand how worried you should be.”  My second favorite quote is, “Study harder, take life seriously”

Click here to get the results of the survey