Concord High School, Concord, New Hampshire

The Crimson Review

Concord High School, Concord, New Hampshire

The Crimson Review

PSAT approaches

PSAT+approaches

Though Concord High School juniors are scheduled to take the PSAT in just a few weeks, few know what to expect.
Dr. Ronna Cadarette, assistant principal of Commons D, explained the Preliminary SAT as “a method to gauge your performance and [find] where your gaps might be if you were to take the SAT.”
Cadarette knows what the PSAT is all about, but Miranda Harris is one junior who isn’t on the same page, despite the rapidly approaching test date of October 15.
“It’s a test. That right there is what I know,” Harris said. “Like Pre-SATs?”
Harris said that she read “that little green sheet” covering basic information about the test, but that flyer offered little clarification, only stating that the PSAT will be given to juniors “as part of the Concord School District’s vision to assure college and career readiness for all students.”
Cadarette said the district requires juniors to take the PSAT so that the school can use the data to identify students’ strengths and weaknesses for future course planning.
Senior Julia Day, who took the PSAT already, said juniors can benefit from the experience. She found  the PSAT to be “good practice for the time and how [the test] would be set up.”
Day advises juniors to take their time, not rush through, and take the test seriously as it is valuable preparation for the SAT.
Harris hopes the PSAT will prepare her for the SAT though she finds it a bit ridiculous.
The test will cost every junior $20, although there is financial aid available upon request.
While some schools don’t require students to pay, “when you pay for it, the chances are you want to be more invested and chances are you’ll use the results more than if it’s just another test you’ll take,” said Cadarette.
Though juniors may go into the experience unsure of what the PSAT will entail, they are expected to try their hardest during the exam, which will take place during periods 2 and 4 on October 15.

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