January 9, 2009--Testing

Yesterday I went to Ivy Tech to take a placement assessment, since I've applied to take online classes next fall. I hadn't had to take a test in a long time, and I was kind of nervous about it even though it's not a pass or fail test. I left right around noon and I didn't eat lunch because I wasn't hungry. I regretted that decision about two hours later.

They said it was a three-to-four hour test, and I spent just over four hours taking it. I wanted to be very careful to read everything through thoroughly. It was divided into three sections--writing, reading, and math. The first section, writing, had two part. On the first part I had to make corrections on several essays, and on the second I had to write a 300-600 word essay. That part was timed--I had an hour to write it. I wrote an essay about why developing natural resources is a better way to attract tourists than building an amusement park. I took almost the whole hour, going back and re-reading it checking for mistakes.

The next section was reading. I had to read a few paragraphs and answer questions about it. I found it pretty easy overall, although there was one question I wasn't sure of the answer. I was supposed to choose which sentence best captured the idea of the story, and none of them really seemed like the right answer to me.

The third section was math. By this time I was getting really hungry and had a headache, and most of the questions were algebra. I did algebra in high school, but it's been quite a few years since I've done it. I was so lost on most of it. By the time I got towards the end of the test I wasn't even trying anymore--I was just picking random answers to get done so I could go get something to eat.

They printed out a copy for me on my way out, and I did pretty well on most of the test. I got a 99 on the writing section and a 99 on the reading section (I must have missed that one question). I don't think they graded they the essay yet--that section on the print-out wasn't very clear to me. I don't know how they could have anyway with printing it out for me on the way out.

In the pre-algebra part of the math test I got a 90, which I was pleased with, but in the algebra part I only scored a 34. Yikes! Actually, I'm surprised I did as well as I did, considering how many of those I just chose random answers for. So I guess I'll be taking algebra again in college. Oh well, I suppose it will be helpful to know that again when my kids get into high school.