testing

Timeline of Events for High School Students

Posted on by patweso

Oftentimes homeschooled students miss out on opportunities because they are unaware of available events as well as the deadlines associated with certain opportunities. Planning ahead will help your students successfully complete high school and be well prepared for life after graduation. Below are suggestions to consider for each grade of high school. There are links included that will direct you to sites with more information or past blog posts that address particular subject matters. Some of the information is repeated in more than one grade and, although it may seem redundant, it allows parents to skip to a later grade if their students have already completed an earlier grade.

General Advice:  

Begin helping the student discover his/her gifts and talents. Discuss classes to include in the high school years.  English, history, science and math in addition to classes that interest the student, encourage character, teach computer skills, and more. Include specialized classes or co-ops that encourage the talents and interests of the student when possible. Be aware that there may be state requirements regarding particular courses necessary for a homeschooled student to earn state grants. In addition, some colleges have certain requirements regarding classes that should be included on a student’s high school transcript. Not all colleges require two years of the same foreign language in high school, but some do. Most expect to see four credits of English, three or four years of math, three credits of science (with at least one lab), and three credits social studies. Many states have added a half credit for personal finance to their suggested guidelines. There are no laws regarding the credits a homeschooled student needs to graduate, only guidelines, but knowing the requirements for state grants as well as the expectations of the colleges your student is considering will help you plan to meet your state’s requirements and the requirements of your top college choices. The state of Tennessee does not require a homeschooled student to take particular classes in order to earn state grants, but an ACT or SAT score is required. Some states may require certain GPAs, test scores and/or community service for grants. The grants often have deadlines for application so be sure you are aware of that information before the student begins his senior year. Bryan College does not have specific requirements for high school courses but, depending on the student’s desired major, certain high school classes may be recommended by faculty members. For instance, if a student plans to pursue an Engineering degree, then taking an increased number of math and science classes during high school will help better prepare the student for that major.

Opportunities: Discover local opportunities for co-ops, classes, athletic, music, drama, and additional events that may be worth pursuing. Look into Civil Air Patrol and TeenPact. Join a local speech and debate club (or, in the absence of a local club, start one). STOA and NCFCA are two Christian homeschool speech and debate clubs. One of my regrets after homeschooling my 9 for more than 32 years is not getting involved in speech and debate clubs until my oldest four had completed high school. 

9th grade

Transcripts:  Keep records to be inserted in a transcript including subjects studied along with credits and grades earned. If you would like to use the Transcript Genie offered for free by Bryan College to build a professional-looking transcript (it even calculates and weights grades), go to this link, scroll down and enter your email address. There is also a free eBook called The Journey that you can request and it will provide information on testing, scholarships, and more.

Community Service:  Look for opportunities for your student (and/or the entire family) to participate in volunteer opportunities, ministries, camps, classes, and more. Keep a record of volunteer hours and hold on to any certificates earned.

Portfolio:  Begin collecting and filing documents that provide proof of the student’s participation in community service, mission trips, camps, classes, athletic events, awards, certifications, and more. If your student is featured in an article, add a copy of the article to the portfolio. If your student has work published, include that in the portfolio.

Testing:  Participate in the PSAT testing if possible. This is an affordable test for students offered in October and, in 2021, an additional test date in January was added. Register your student for the CLT10. Students can take this test several times a year at home, for free, on a computer, with the parent proctoring. Parents can order the analytics for a small fee.

Summer:  Check out camps, mission trips, internships and apprenticeships that might interest your student.  A student of this age can often be trained to work at camps, gaining experience, responsibility, and qualifications for potential summer job opportunities. Making money, although beneficial, should not always be the deciding factor when choosing between opportunities. Students may gain more experience and character growth in volunteer positions.

Dual Enrollment: Look into dual enrollment classes for the 10th grade year. Dual enrollment is a great opportunity as it allows a student to earn both high school and college credit at the same time, but it is not without dangers. Homeschooled students often make a few mistakes pertaining to dual enrollment and this post will help you avoid those mistakes. Choosing which dual enrollment class a student should take is also important.  

10th grade

If the state in which you live offers grants and scholarships for dual enrollment and college then find out the qualifications for participation in order to make sure your student meets the requirements. Bryan College allows 10th graders to take dual enrollment classes but the requirements are more stringent than the requirements for 11th and 12th graders, so planning ahead to meet those requirements is important.

Plan classes according to academic needs, talents and interest, and opportunity.

Testing:  Participate in the PSAT testing that takes place if possible. Register your student for the CLT10. Students can take this free test several times a year at home, on a computer, with the parent proctoring. Parents can order the analytics for a small fee. 10th graders taking the CLT10 may qualify for scholarships offered by the CLT. Consider having your student take college entrance exams, particularly if test scores are required for dual enrollment classes. Most colleges accept both the ACT and the SAT. Many Christian colleges accept the CLT.

College Credits: If your student is ready to take college classes, find a college that is a good fit for your student. (Bryan College offers online classes four times a year with out-of-state scholarships.)  Be sure you discover guidelines for dual enrollment because, in some instances, college entrance exam test scores are required. Consider CLEP and AP possibilities for additional college credit. 

Opportunities: Discover local opportunities for co-ops, classes, athletes, music, drama, and additional opportunities. Look into Civil Air Patrol and TeenPact. Join a local speech and debate club (or, in the absence of a local club, start one) STOA or NCFCA. 

Summer:  Consider dual enrollment classes, camps, mission trips, internships and apprenticeships.  A student of this age can often be trained to work at camps, gaining experience, responsibility, and qualifications for potential summer job opportunities.  

11th grade

Plan classes according to academic needs, talents and interest, and opportunity.

If the state in which you live offers grants and scholarships for dual enrollment and college, find out the qualifications for participation.

Preparing for College: Attend college fairs and visit colleges of interest. Take college entrance exams, pinpoint weaknesses and tutor to the weakness. Purchase materials that will help improve test scores. Consider on-line tutoring for test prep such as 36 University (enter code “bryan” and save $3 a month, reducing the price to $12 a month). Schedule campus visits at colleges of interest. Begin with the virtual tours offered online, and visit in person when possible, preferably when classes are taking place so the student can attend classes. Begin applying to colleges of interest when permitted (find out if there are events or times when the application fees are waived). Research scholarship and grant opportunities offered by the state in which you live, the colleges you are considering, as well as independent scholarships. This article gives suggestions for making college affordable.

Testing:  Discover opportunities for taking the PSAT the summer before, or at the beginning of the 11th grade year. It is the score from the PSAT taken during the 11th grade year that qualifies students for National Merit Scholarships. A National Merit Semi-finalist receives full tuition at Bryan College.

November:  Answers in Genesis sponsors a free college expo for high school students that includes a free ticket to the Ark and the possibility of winning a $500 scholarship.

Summer:  Consider attending camps that are held at the college your student is considering attending. Request a FAFSA ID for student and parent in order to fill out the FAFSA the senior year.

12th grade

Plan classes according to academic needs, talents and interest, and opportunity. If you would like to print a diploma for your student, the free e-resource mentioned, The Journey, includes an editable diploma template. None of my nine children have ever needed a diploma. What they did need was a completed transcript.

Continue attending college fairs and visiting colleges of interest unless a firm decision has been made at this time. 

If the state in which you live offers grants and scholarships for dual enrollment (and college) find out the qualifications for participation early in the year because deadlines are often tied to certain opportunities. If your state offers grants for college, but you know your student will be attending an out-of-state college, then using the college grant (borrowing against it) for dual enrollment will save you money in the long run. Students planning to attend an in-state college may also want to borrow against a state grant for dual enrollment because the cost of dual enrollment classes is often much lower than the cost of traditional college classes.

Make sure all classes necessary for graduation are scheduled to be completed either by participation in class or by testing.  

Apply to colleges of interest. 

Continue earning college credits via dual enrollment classes, CLEP (can now be taken virtually from home) or AP tests (can now be taken from home). Continue taking college entrance exams. As a result of COVID many colleges are test optional meaning they will use a student’s GPA for merit scholarship, without requiring a test score. However, most test optional colleges will accept test scores and use the scores to award scholarship amounts if the exam score increases the amount a student can earn beyond what the GPA entitles the student to be awarded.

Attend scholarship events (when applicable) that take place at the college of interest.  At Bryan College these events take place once during each semester.  These are invitation only events, extended to qualifying seniors who have applied to Bryan College and each participant receives additional scholarship funds of varying amounts based on an interview with faculty or staff.

Be sure your student has developed time management skills. If the student is taking a dual enrollment class or attending a structured co-op then, more-than-likely, the student is honing these skills. This article offers five steps to help students improve their study skills.

October:  Fill out the FAFSA. You may want to wait a few days because the first few days are filled with so many families completing the FAFSA that the site gets bogged down. But, do not wait too long because in certain situations scholarships may be first come, first serve.

November:  Answers in Genesis sponsors a free college expo for high school students that includes a free ticket to the Ark and the possibility of winning a $500 scholarship.

Spring:  Be sure all subjects necessary for graduation will be completed.  There may be state requirements for homeschooled students to complete specific courses in order to earn state grants. Some colleges have certain requirements regarding classes that should be included on a student’s transcript. Make sure all requirements are met. Continue taking college entrance exams if higher scores are needed for scholarships. 

Summer:  Consider sending your student to camps that are held at the college your student plans to attend if that’s an option. At Bryan College a senior enrolled at Bryan will earn a small scholarship for attending Bryan’s Summer Institute. A high school graduate can also dual enroll with Bryan College the summer after graduation. If your student plans to live on campus, then he may very well find a suitable roommate while attending the camp.

The earlier you start preparing your high school student for success, the better it will be for everyone involved. However, if you are like I was with my oldest kiddos, and you are late to the game, do what you can to play catch up and make up for lost time. Even though my older students were ill prepared (thanks to my lack of knowledge concerning many of these issues), they did well after high school. Could they have done better or had an easier time getting to where they wanted to go had I better prepared them? Probably, but I was doing all I knew to do at that time. Give yourself some grace and utilize the information that is available to you and your students now that you are aware of the options and opportunities. Feel free to email me at pat.wesolowski@bryan.edu if you have any questions or if I can help in any way.

College Testing: All You Ever Wanted to Know, but Never Thought to Ask

Posted on by patweso

test takingAfter homeschooling my nine children for more than 32 years, I am finally finished!  One of my regrets is not acknowledging the importance of college entrance exams and/or CLEP and AP credit for those heading to college.  For years I was convinced that:

  • College tests are not very good indicators for how well a student will do in college (that opinion has not changed, by the way).
  • Some students who are amazing students may not test well so a great GPA coupled with an impressive portfolio should be adequate for acceptance and scholarship purposed (wishful thinking, but not true for the most part).

Reality hit when several my children were not offered the scholarships that I felt like they deserved (yes, I am one of those mothers) because, whether I agree with this or not, the highest scholarships awarded to incoming college students are usually academic scholarships and those scholarships are almost always tied to test scores.  (When discussing anything related to college policies and practices, one must use terms such as “generally,” “usually,” and “it depends” liberally.)

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As embarrassed as I am to admit this, I was not aware that the PSAT test is tied to the National Merit Scholarships and, as a consequence, I never had my children take this test.  The PSAT can be taken by students (whether homeschool, private school or public school students) as early as the 8th grade (depending on the school administering the tests). The only year the score counts toward the National Merit Scholarship is the student’s junior year.  The test is given in October of each year (several test dates available) and it is a very affordable test.  My advice would be to have your students begin taking this test as soon as they are allowed.  In the county where Bryan College is located (Rhea County), the public high school will only allow sophomores to take this test early.  In some counties the schools will allow younger students to sign up for the test.  It is a good idea to find a location for test taking in September of each year because some schools run out of test booklets.  Schools may require that your student has an official ID.  If  your student does not yet have a drivers license he/she can obtain an official ID from the DMV for a small charge.  Passports are acceptable forms of ID as well.  By the way, the difference between a National Merit semi-finalist and a finalist is not determined by scores, but rather by jumping through hoops after a student becomes a semi-finalist. The CLT (new college entrance exam, described further below) also has a CLT10 which is free for students to take on-line in April and details regarding scholarship opportunities for this exam are forthcoming. From the CLT website: The CLT10 is an alternative to the PSAT. In terms of academic rigor it is scaled back from the regular CLT (ie, no trigonometry, few level 5 questions). In addition, the CLT10 is free for all students. Although it is free, students who score above a 108 are still eligible for $2,500.00 in scholarship money through CLT’s partnership with the National Association of Scholars. 

Research shows that many students’ scores increase each time they take a college entrance exam. Part of the reason for this is because the student becomes more relaxed with experience.  Students who are intentional about preparing for (and practicing) these exams increase their scores as well.  Some colleges super score, taking the highest score of specific sections from multiple test dates.

CLT logoThere are now 3 college entrance exams: the ACT, the SAT and the CLT (new test).  Some areas of the country encourage the ACT while others encourage the SAT.  Most colleges will accept either score for admission and scholarship purposes.  The newest test, the CLT (Classic Learning Test) is now accepted at more than 70 Christian colleges.  Bryan College offers the CLT on site with admission and scholarship amounts awarded according to scores earned.  The CLT is taken on-line (no more bubbles), students can sign up without late fee penalties within a week of the test date, and the test scores are received the same day. A comparison article on the SAT vs the ACT is provided by College Prep Genius here. A comparison article of the 3 tests is provided at the CLT site is located here.

Preparing for the Tests!  There are quite a few free options for improving test scores including videos (search Youtube) and practice tests from the official test sites of each test. The books we found most helpful in preparing for the ACT and the SAT are Princeton Review’s Cracking the (SAT) or (ACT).  36 University is a very affordable on-line tutorial for the ACT.  It cost $15 per month with no contract.  When registering if you use the code “Bryan” you will save $3 per month!  College Prep Genius is a program used by many homeschool families and it is a prep site for the SAT and the new CLT as well.  I was amazed at what I learned in five minutes standing at the College Prep Genius table at a college event listening to Jean Burk give tips on the college exams. Although 36 University and College Prep Genius tutor to a specific test most of what they teach applies to all three of the college exams. The CLT has a guide for their test as well.

element5-digital-352048 (1)When should students begin testing?  That depends on the student and on the direction your student is headed.  Many students begin taking practice tests as early as 8th or 9th grade.  Because the tests are not inexpensive ($49+) most parents wait until the junior year to begin taking official tests.  Some schools require a college exam test score for dual enrollment purposes.  At Bryan College a student can begin dual enrolling after the sophomore year without a test score (transcript required showing 3.0 GPA or higher), unless they are taking a math class in which case the student would have to provide a college exam math score of ACT 22, SAT 540, or CLT 22.

Should you have your student’s test scores sent automatically to colleges?  It depends.  (Get use to this phrase because there are no die-hard, set in stone, rules and regulations that apply to anything college.)  In order to encourage my children to be more relaxed and less stressed about taking a college entrance exam for the first time, I told them that no one would see their scores.  The downside to this (at least with the ACT and SAT) is that there is a fee to have the scores sent in at a later date.  These are considerations you need to weigh and the answer may vary depending on each student’s situation.

What about CLEP and AP test credits? Although this blog is primarily addressing college entrance exams there are a few facts about CLEP and AP that you will want to know, such as:

  • Not all colleges accept CLEP and/or AP credits so check with colleges of interest
  • To receive college credit one must pass the exam (pass or fail are the 2 options)
  • Grades are not assigned to the credits earned by testing for credit so GPAs are not affected (although I did have a parent shared with me that one college assigns a “C” grade to CLEP credits and this would be a huge disadvantage to a student striving for a high GPA so, again, ask  registrars these specific questions).

In order to prepare well for your student’s high school years do not make the same mistakes I made. Begin early with preparations for success with the college exams if your students are headed to college. Even if you are not sure if college is in your students’ future, it is better to be prepared even if they do not go to college than to not be prepared and discover, at the last minute, that college is the next step.  Feel free to email me if you have specific questions I can attempt to answer:  pat.wesolowski@bryan.edu

After 32 years of homeschooling I am now the Homeschool Specialist at Bryan College and I have put together a free resource to help parents plan for the high school years and it can be downloaded here.  TheJourney-Social (2) (1)

 

 

 

 

 

A Third College Entrance Exam? Yes, Please!

Posted on by patweso

CLT logoFor many years the only two college entrance exams offered to students have been the SAT and the ACT.  Oftentimes Christians have felt at a disadvantage for several reasons, to-wit:

1.  Some of the questions put the students in a moral dilemma (should students give the politically correct answer, gaining a point, or answer according to their beliefs?)

2.  The reading content often contains biases and politically charged articles that do not line up with a Christian’s beliefs

3.  The tests are aligned with Common Core and many homeschooling families as well as private schools do not teach Common Core material.

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Another disadvantage to these tests is the fact that one must register for the test more than a month prior to the test or pay a hefty late fee.

These disadvantages are remedied with the new CLT (Classic Learning Test).

The CLT is offered five times a year. Writing is optional and free.  Students can sign up for the test up until a week before the test is administered.  The test is taken on-line either with a student’s device or with a device offered by the site proctoring the exam. Scores are received by the end of the day when given at a proctored sight. If given online as a virtual test, the scoring process will take longer.

The CLT is a two hour online test. The CLT8 is for 7th and 8th graders and they can take the test at home. The CLT10 is for 9th and 10th graders and they, too, take the test from home with a parent proctor. The CLT10, like the PSAT, comes with scholarship potential for high scoring students.

Here is an article put out by HSLDA comparing the SAT, ACT and CLT.

Bryan College will proctor the CLT on our campus.

The test dates and locations are found here.

Practice the test to see for yourself what it is like!  (The practice test I took included a reading passage containing an article by C. S. Lewis!)

The PSAT and Why it is Important

Posted on by patweso

psatAs the Homeschool Specialist at Bryan College I plan to use this forum as a means to communicate information useful to parents of teens as they prepare their children for life after high school!  Let’s talk about the importance of the PSAT!

The PSAT is a test that students should take before taking the SAT and/or the ACT.  The PSAT is given only once a year (in October) and the student’s junior year score is the score that counts towards the National Merit Scholarship.  A student can begin taking the PSAT before the eleventh grade, but the only score that counts towards the National Merit Scholarship is the test taken during the junior year.  Semi-finalists awarded the NMS qualify for full tuition at Bryan College.

The PSAT is not only a “practice” test of sorts, but it is the test that determines National Merit Scholarship awards!!

The PSAT is:

1.  Only given once a year (in October)

2.  Quite affordable ($13 – $25 depending on location)

3.  Offered to students younger than juiniors (as practice)

4.  Offered at most public and private schools

5. To earn a National Merit Scholarship a student has to qualify by scores earned in addition to meeting requirements.

6.  Becoming a NMS finalist is possible for each semi-finalist (a semi-finalist receives full tuition at Bryan College) who completes additional requirements.

The PSAT covers reading, writing, and mathematics. In 2015 the PSAT was changed in a manner similar to the SAT changes.  Homeschooled students can take the PSAT at a public or private high school.  Register your student for this test in September or early October so that a test booklet will be reserved for the student. Some schools require the student to be present at registration and the student must have an acceptable form of ID. This site includes a list of schools where this test is given.

The test is quite affordable, so having high school students take this test is advantageous for many reasons.  Again, it is only offered in October of each year.  Although the score received during the student’s junior year is the score that counts toward the National Merit Scholarship, a student can begin taking this test as early as ninth grade, and perhaps even earlier, depending on the policy of the staff at the facility offering the test.