Are you a parent who's experiencing test anxiety over your eighth grader's upcoming Catholic high school entrance exam? You are not alone. If the proliferation of entrance exam prep courses and study guides are an indicator, many families are investing in whatever they think will give their child an edge in getting into the high school of their choice.
This trend of putting added pressure on students is alarming and unnecessary, say local Catholic high school administrators.
"The entrance exam is a type of test you cannot prepare for," said Nancy Coonis, archdiocesan superintendent of secondary schools in the Department of Catholic Schools. "It's not a content-based test; it's a skill-based test recording a student's skill level in the areas of reading, math and language."
And, Coonis emphasized, a student's test score is not the only measure used to accept a student. "A student's grades are the number one best predictor of how they'll do in the future," said Coonis.
In competitive high schools which receive more than two or three times as many applicants as they can accommodate --- like private schools such as Loyola in Los Angeles --- students with a low grade point average and below average test scores may not be accepted to their first-choice school.
However, Coonis pointed out, in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, there are many more freshman seats in local high schools than in eighth grade elementary classrooms. "If a student meets academic qualifications, there's a seat for them," said Coonis. Currently there are 30,339 students enrolled in 50 Catholic secondary schools, including private, parish and archdiocesan schools.
A few Catholic high schools offer practice tests before the high school entrance exam, offered by most schools this year on Feb. 5, 2005. Providence High School in Burbank will hold a practice exam for a $20 fee on Jan. 8 from 10 a.m. to noon.
"We've been giving this exam for around 12 years to alleviate anxiety and to get students used to the test process," said Judy Umeck, director of admissions at the private Catholic school run by the Sisters of Providence. "I get calls from people all over the place."
Another Burbank school, Bellarmine-Jefferson High School, an archdiocesan-run school, will offer a free test workshop on Feb. 3 from 3-5 p.m. for students planning on taking the entrance exam at the school on Feb. 5. Those not planning on taking the entrance exam at the school but wishing to register for the Feb. 3 workshop must pay a $50 fee, payable the day of the workshop.
St. Bernard High School in Playa del Rey, St. Francis High School in La Caņada and Don Bosco Technical High School in Rosemead will offer entrance exam seminars given by Dr. Henry Herzog, who has given free motivational classes to local high schools and taught a twice-weekly, four-week $350 exam prep course for 17 years.
"I cover everything conceivable on the test, and my success rate is high," said Herzog, a career educator who taught Presidents Kennedy and Johnson and their cabinet members speed-reading at The White House. "I'm now getting kids of kids who took my course."
Richard Klee, Notre Dame High School admissions director, said he isn't sure if the Sherman Oaks school will give a practice test this year after holding its first one last year. "We were expecting 150-200 students and 529 showed up," said Klee. School staff is currently deliberating whether the practice test added, or subtracted, to the overall pressure experienced by the students.
According to Klee, Notre Dame High School considers a variety of factors when evaluating applicants. "We look at the whole student," said Klee, adding that the admissions committee considers a student's grades, the entrance exam score, recommendations and results of an in-person interview.
"All of the Catholic high schools want archdiocesan school students to continue their Catholic education," said Klee. "There's a place for everybody." |