1350: 730 math, 620 verbal

took it a 2nd time to try and break 1400, but got a bit lower.

3/21/2011 1:53:10 AM

Quote :

"thanks for linking all of us to our own circlejerk thread about your paper accomplishment. let all of us know when you start paying income tax, too."

i think you meant "your" own circle jerk thread. and those are big words given it was a response to your posting your gre analytical score.

and i pay income tax. pay my own rent, too.

[Edited on March 21, 2011 at 1:53 AM. Reason : quote]

3/21/2011 1:53:13 AM

I posted my gre analytical score and juxtaposed it against the fact that I went home and microwaved a pizza. the fact that you clipped off the latter half is your editorial decision, but I don't quite think you're going to win an I don't give a fuck argument with me.

3/21/2011 1:55:02 AM

given that you started it, it's pretty easy actually.

3/21/2011 1:56:56 AM

you were doing good when you were quoting rushmore. I even made an eli cash reference last night.

but then you had to go and point everyone to your self-congratulatory thread. that's wher eI draw the line, buddy.

3/21/2011 1:58:49 AM

clearly, this is a man who gives a fuck.

3/21/2011 2:00:56 AM

nice retort. berkeley can do better

3/21/2011 2:02:06 AM

i know they can, that's what makes it so exciting.

3/21/2011 2:04:07 AM

3/21/2011 2:05:09 AM

i'm okay w/ that.

3/21/2011 2:06:17 AM

you are forgiven

3/21/2011 2:07:12 AM

ha, i didn't catch that.

okay very nice.

3/21/2011 2:09:13 AM

I always thought that the SAT was a way of cutting out students that didn't come from decent homes.

It seems like students that do well on those have parents with money and support them with classes and such.

It is definitely not a measure of how smart someone is.

Obviously this is a sore subject.

[Edited on March 21, 2011 at 2:22 AM. Reason : edit]

3/21/2011 2:19:06 AM

I went from a 1340 to a 1380 on the old SAT and was disappointed because I thought I would do better.

Then I took the GRE and got 800 quant and 580 verbal with a 4/4 (whatever the highest was) for the essay at the end. Ended up dropping out of grad school because my undergrad GPA was too low to get financial aid (and insulin isn't free :V) but hoopty testicles.

Now I just want to learn practical engineering stuff so I can actually become a proper professional engineer. I'm realizing that a master's degree would be neat but not essential long-term.

3/21/2011 3:22:38 AM

1380 and 1420 on the SAT

i don't even remember my GRE score

[Edited on March 21, 2011 at 7:40 AM. Reason : GRE]

3/21/2011 7:40:02 AM

^In the other thread you said you "aced it with out studying."

I assumed that meant you made a perfect score on the GRE.

3/21/2011 8:20:05 AM

i remember doing pretty well considering i had to go shit my brains out in the middle of the math section

3/21/2011 8:24:37 AM

Took it once and got a 1360.

3/21/2011 8:25:07 AM

1580


I was beaten by my parents when my scores came back

3/21/2011 8:42:29 AM

Quote :

"It seems like students that do well on those have parents with money and support them with classes and such. It is definitely not a measure of how smart someone is. "

3/21/2011 8:50:54 AM

Quote :

"I always thought that the SAT was a way of cutting out students that didn't come from decent homes. It seems like students that do well on those have parents with money and support them with classes and such. It is definitely not a measure of how smart someone is. Obviously this is a sore subject. "

There is some truth to that, but then at the same time my schol provided us with free SAT courses you could take during the school day. It was basically a course on how to take the test. They taught us that it was a racist, sexist test and not to over think the english questions because chances are if you were actually intelligent you could find flaws in the answers.

Really, if you wanted to do good on the SAT you just had to know how to take the test.

[Edited on March 21, 2011 at 8:59 AM. Reason : ]

3/21/2011 8:58:13 AM

Quote :

"I always thought that the SAT was a way of cutting out students that didn't come from decent homes. It seems like students that do well on those have parents with money and support them with classes and such. "

I disagree with that. The reason I disagree with that is that I feel in order for your statement to be correct the scenario would be a student who did well in school, but because they didn't come from a "decent home" their SAT scores suffered.

Now, if you were making an argument for students not coming from a decent home and how it affected their overall schooling/education including SAT scores then yeah I think that has been proven (even though it obviously has some exceptions, mainly that parent involvement is more important than the amount of money they have imo when it comes to impacting education).

I never took any prep classes or did any preparation whatsoever besides signing up for it and did fine after one take (I knew my score with my grades would get me into any of the few schools I was looking at at the time).

All that being said, I do agree that it is not a great measure of "intelligence," but I really don't think it is any sort of weed out test for poor students. It requires 0 studying or prep classes to do ok/well enough on it. The standard education curriculum is geared straight towards these types of tests so if they do ok in school they should do fine on the test (barring some students who just don't work well in test conditions). There is no special trick. The prep classes and learning how to take the exam are really mainly beneficial for 2 types of people: The people who were already going to get a really high score that are looking to push for that elite/perfect score to boost their resume or the students who didn't do so well in school but are looking to score higher on the SAT as a last ditch effort to offset their mediocre/sub-par grades.

[Edited on March 21, 2011 at 9:13 AM. Reason : expanded opinion]

3/21/2011 9:00:45 AM

Quote :

"In the other thread you said you "aced it with out studying." I assumed that meant you made a perfect score on the GRE."

pardon...i'll correct myself:

i made an extremely high score without studying

you shouldn't assume, though...it makes you sound dumber than you probably are

Quote :

"That being said, I do agree that it is not a great measure of "intelligence.""

i agree with you...maybe the new SATs are better, but i've always done really well on standardized tests and i don't think it demonstrates my level of "intelligence" any better or worse than anything else

i know a lot of "smart" people who have zero common sense and i know a lot of people with a great deal of common sense and shrewdness that couldn't solve a simple geometry problem

*shrug*

[Edited on March 21, 2011 at 9:08 AM. Reason : .]

3/21/2011 9:00:51 AM

I try not to be too judgmental about scores.

But if my kid scored like a 750/800 on the math+verbal portions of the SAT, I would be extremely pissed at their school for not preparing them better. Super pissed! It doesn't mean my kid's dumb or that they can't go to college and pursue their dreams...but it does mean that somebody done messed something up in the 13 years they were supposed to be prepping my kid for college.

3/21/2011 9:20:18 AM

i agree (as would most college-educated folks) that the SAT is flawed measure of "intelligence" and that it is given too much weight by many colleges (though it may have changed since i've graduated high school)

i don't know what the solution is, though...the whole point of standardization is to provide a common baseline that schools from all areas can use as a target...when the school knows what the students will be tested on, i think you're correct in assuming that blame oftentimes lies with the teachers/school/system and not necessarily with the student

then again, not all people learn the same way (and some are especially good or bad with standardized testing) and so they can only cater to the majority

seems to me that those who don't test well tend to become "artists" or the like

3/21/2011 9:25:48 AM

Quote :

"But if my kid scored like a 750/800 on the math+verbal portions of the SAT, I would be extremely pissed at their school for not preparing them better. Super pissed! It doesn't mean my kid's dumb or that they can't go to college and pursue their dreams...but it does mean that somebody done messed something up in the 13 years they were supposed to be prepping my kid for college."

IMO if you're surprised at your kid's SAT score, the blame is shared between you and the school. You should know what subjects your kid is struggling with.

3/21/2011 9:27:07 AM

i preferred the ACT

3/21/2011 9:29:55 AM

^^There are entire counties in NC where less than half the kids take the SAT, and even then, they average slightly above 800. Those kids take advanced classes and make good grades. How are their parents supposed to know when they are struggling in a subject or not being prepared properly for college the SAT?

[Edited on March 21, 2011 at 9:51 AM. Reason : ]

3/21/2011 9:48:15 AM

I got 12 something and got a ton of shit from my parents for it. I don't test well, eventually standardized testing becomes a boring guessing game when I'm over it. I've never tested well actually.

It got me into the school I wanted though so I didn't care.

3/21/2011 9:52:31 AM

parental involvement is extremely important

that said, i doubt it's either the parents or the teachers/school/system that are solely at fault

3/21/2011 9:53:50 AM

^^^
I don't know anything about those counties so I can't really make an educated comment, but if they are aware of how terrible the school system is, they could take an active role in the PTA or school board.

Quote :

"that said, i doubt it's either the parents or the teachers/school/system that are solely at fault"

3/21/2011 9:55:36 AM

Quote :

"Those kids take advanced classes and make good grades. How are their parents supposed to know when they are struggling in a subject or not being prepared properly for college?"

1) what is the grading criteria at these schools if they are "taking advanced classes and making good grades"?? I scored a 1060 on the SAT in 7th grade and K-5th for me was spent at a small, rural elementary. The SAT covers basic material that is covered in school. I have a very hard time believing there are kids acing advanced classes yet failing to get an 800 on the SAT.

2) As far as parents knowing when their kids are struggling in a subject...what do you mean "how are they supposed to know?" My parents were always involved in my school. They took the time to ask questions about my classes, quiz me, check my work now and then and even re-read some of the books I was reading in school to better help me study for tests etc if I had questions. It was very obvious when I was stuck on some specific subject. They didn't wait until the end of the year and see their kid failing and then rush to the teacher to complain like so many parents do. They never did any assignment for me ever. They just spent time with me. I help tutor kids in school and it takes just a few minutes to see where their stumbling blocks are. Parents who claim they are clueless that little johnny was struggling are pretty much admitting to having no involvement in their kid's education.

[Edited on March 21, 2011 at 10:03 AM. Reason : .]

3/21/2011 9:57:27 AM

Quote :

"The reason I disagree with that is that I feel in order for your statement to be correct the scenario would be a student who did well in school, but because they didn't come from a "decent home" their SAT scores suffered."

This DOES happen with poor students that put in the effort and work in high shcool to go to college but dont have the resources or guidance to study well and prep for the SAT.

Just my opinion on it though.

3/21/2011 10:08:50 AM

^^http://datacenter.kidscount.org/data/bystate/Map.aspx?state=NC&loct=5&map_colors=Solid&dtm=4744&ind=2270&tf=38

Those are the average scores, and that chart doesn't even account for the fact that, in plenty of those places, less than half the students even take the SAT. So it's literally the top 40 percent of students who are averaging those scores.

I'm just saying I would be pissed if it happened to my kid.

3/21/2011 10:14:54 AM

^^ I mean, you certainly might be right because I don't have any facts to back my opinion up. I just have a hard time believing that considering I didn't study or prep AT ALL for the test and a good majority of my friends didn't either and they did fine. Like I said, I certainly can see people doing poorly in school (grades) AND the SAT due to uninvolved parents (I don't think "poor" has hardly anything to do with it unless that is a direct result of the parents themselves being uneducated...in which case THAT is the factor not the lack of $) but I would like to see some hard facts showing a large % of kids doing really well at a decent school who score an 800 on the SATs. Perhaps, as I stated in my previous post, the kids making good grades were really just the "top" kids at a school with a lot of not-so-smart kids and curving skews the results at these schools (iow a 3.8 at school X ~= a 3.8 at school y).

^ I guess the only other thing I can think of/say is that those areas don't attract a lot of teachers so they obviously have a slightly more mediocre crop of teachers. I mean do you want to force teachers to go to those areas? I don't really know what there is to discuss there. I don't think it is really the teachers fault, rather the parents who chose to live somewhere and/or aren't involved in their kids' education.

It's certainly a bit of a self-perpetuating cycle and I don't think you can blame the teachers completely at all. There are certainly lazy and bad teachers but in my experience I have hardly EVER met a student who had involved parents who did very poorly in school (obviously there is a ceiling based on their intelligence - not everyone is a 4.0 student regardless of school and parenting).

[Edited on March 21, 2011 at 10:32 AM. Reason : .]

3/21/2011 10:17:24 AM

Quote :

"my other brother fell asleep during his SAT so we're not even sure what he got"

I took it twice, was hungover, fell asleep both times, and made the same score

I got into NCSU with early decision so I didn't care.

1170

3/21/2011 10:21:53 AM

Not that SAT scores really matter these days. With the amount of remedial classes a lot of freshmen have to take I have to wonder what the point is at all.

3/21/2011 10:25:51 AM

It matters if you are swinging for the fences in terms of the Stanford, Harvard types.

3/21/2011 10:31:41 AM

Obviously I am not an expert on this but I'll just add this even though I have stated very similar stuff several times in here. I only know what worked in my personal life but I think it is something that would work for most kids:

My parents put a lot of effort in to make sure my sister and I understood the value of our education. They were very unselfish and took a lot of their own time to assist us in school however we needed but more importantly they took the "teach" not "do" approach with our work. They didn't do anything for us but always made sure to help us with whatever they could. I don't think it is any coincidence that my sister and I both graduated in the top 10 of our class (not just 10%) when we were probably in the bottom 1% of income at the school we attended.

3/21/2011 10:33:32 AM

You're on TWW. It's overachieving nerd central.

My mom made a perfect score on the GRE. And we read books together. And, no, she never did my work for me. And they put it in a lot of effort and blah, blah, blah.

I think that's the case for 85% of the posters in this thread.

You don't need to keep talking about it.

[Edited on March 21, 2011 at 10:51 AM. Reason : Wait--do you have kids yourself? Is that what this is about?]

3/21/2011 10:49:34 AM

1440 on my first attempt...my anal retentive parental units made me take it 4 more times

3/21/2011 10:51:01 AM

1240: 720 verbal, 520 math.

I don't remember my exact GRE score but it was similarly lopsided. I'm not great at math but I'm certainly not inept. But I don't do well on math standardized tests.

3/21/2011 10:54:17 AM

Good thing my shitty SAT score/lack of care about my SAT score doesn't correlate with me kicking ass in school.

Because I did

3/21/2011 10:54:52 AM

^^^^ not yet. The reason I keep talking about it is that people are saying that kids 1) without money don't have a chance at the SAT and 2) that teachers aren't doing their job to prepare the kids and 3) how are the parents supposed to know...

My post addresses all 3 of those so I fail to see how it doesn't apply and I need to stop saying it.

[Edited on March 21, 2011 at 10:59 AM. Reason : .]

3/21/2011 10:55:48 AM

Madman is like a really shitty version of chance

3/21/2011 11:01:14 AM

^^
it doesn't apply because it's a singular anecdote. no one's saying it's not possible for someone from a poor family to succeed - it's just less likely

3/21/2011 11:02:46 AM

I guess the point I was trying to make was that yes you might not have as good of teachers at poorer schools but I also think there is a big drop off in parent involvement with poor families and I think that has as much or more to do with the kids not succeeding than the teachers. I also don't think it has to do with the actual ability to spend money on tutoring, test prep etc. rather the poorer families have parents who are generally poorer because they are uneducated and don't value education the same way and thus don't spend as much time with their kids.

3/21/2011 11:10:06 AM

i never bragged about SAT scores...

3/21/2011 11:12:09 AM

Quote :

"I guess the point I was trying to make was that yes you might not have as good of teachers at poorer schools but I also think there is a big drop off in parent involvement with poor families and I think that has as much or more to do with the kids not succeeding than the teachers. I also don't think it has to do with the actual ability to spend money on tutoring, test prep etc. rather the poorer families have parents who are generally poorer because they are uneducated and don't value education the same way and thus don't spend as much time with their kids."

I agree.



[Edited on March 21, 2011 at 11:29 AM. Reason : .]

3/21/2011 11:29:01 AM

^^ I agree thats what i was tryin to say

3/21/2011 11:29:09 AM