Page 26 - CBA 1991 YEARBOOK

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Testing: One, Two, Three PSAT, SAT, ACT
Every Junior and Senior knows the effect that ACT’s, PSAT’s, and SAT’s have on them. They get all tensed up and think about them twen­ ty-four hours a day. Some students get so worked up about them that they get a head cold or sick to their
stomachs. When the day fi­ nally comes to take the test, they are so nervous they can hardly write.
Most discover that the tests are far worse in their minds than in reality. Once the ini­ tial jitters wear off and a few questions are answered, most
students go into “test mode”, a sort of autom atic pilot whereby they are able to shut out the rest of the world and focus solely on the job at hand. When the test finally ends, it’s such a relief that all pre-test fears are soon forgot­ ten.
Ron M arshall looks sadly at a lengthy PSAT sample test. His ex­ pression does not tell us whether he is pleased with what he sees or not.
Frank Smith gets in some last-min­ ute cramming. Standardized tests are real tough to study for.
22 Academics
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