My son took December SSAT 4th grade elementary test. His overall ssat percentile is 83. He scored 99 percentile in verbal, 86 in math but 28 in reading comprehension. His raw score in reading was 68%. . I don’t believe taking a Jan test would significantly change his score as it’s too close. Should I be very worried about his score? Would his such low reading score impact his overall application acceptance?
Where is thinking he thinking of applying?
We are in west coast Seattle. He wants to apply for lakeside and overlake school.
Reading is a little too low. Are you sure it’s not a “not time off”, or even an error in marking the answer sheet? That could be a concern to a school like lakeside. Reading and math are being closely looked at as far as I know.
Can you please explain what you mean by “not time off”
sorry I meant to say “one time off”, or an irregular performance…
99 percent verbal and 28 percent reading doesn’t make sense. I would review testing guide book and retake it.
Does it sound reasonable that a score of 19 out of 28 (68% raw score) result in 28 percentile?
The percentage is scaled or curved relative to test results from several years, so it’s not a matter of “resonable”. And it’s highly unlikely that it was caluculates wrongly because it should be done all by computers and applied to all tests.
My guess is that your child is not experienced SSAT Reading type questions, which is rather confusing at the first, as it twists a bit to leads the takers into making mistakes. 99% on Verbal means the child is capable of getting higher score on Reading, if not now then maybe after taking a few practice tests and carefully reviewing answers and explanations for all questions (not only ones that he missed) to get the hang of it. If you can’t make the regular January test, you can find a nearby FLEX test location and pay about $300~$400.
When is the application due? If it was my child, I would schedule another test.
Ask them for hand scoring. Could be a bubbling error
@queenmother The application is due on 1/12/17
I would ask if they take the January test and if so let my child retake it. In the meantime I would look over the score report to see what areas need improvement and start working on those pronto.
I agree with Queenmother. 99% verbal does not make sense with 28% reading. It seems possible he made mistakes filling out the answer sheet. hand scoring won’t make a difference in that case.
I would have him retake it. The reading score is freakishly low in comparison to his other scores.
“My guess is that your child is not experienced SSAT Reading type questions, which is rather confusing at the first, as it twists a bit to leads the takers into making mistakes.”
Precisely. Understanding the structure and methodology of the test is truly helpful, particularly for students who may not be familiar with taking standardized tests of this type.
You should know what the typical types of questions are, with their intricate and particular wording, designed to have the eye see one thing, when the focus should really be on ‘that something else.’ You can then guide your child to be ready to encounter them, and not stumble.
According to SSAT, January 7th test score will be available on January 15th barring any snow storms in New Jersey. I would have him retake the test and convince the school to accept January score as it is available on the 15th.
Most schools will accept scores from the January SSAT test-date.
Hi Folks- thanks a lot for your advice. I had him take the test again and scores are back. His reading came up to 76, verbal 84 and math is 99. His overall is 93 percentile now. I am glad we retested - his overall percentile shot up 10 points. I have a few guidance questions.
- Since verbal was 99 in previous test, should I still share both his scores to schools? I am more inclined to share just the second score but wanted some opinions.
- Does the new score look decent enough for lakeside?
Congratulations! This is a much more balanced set of scores, and 99% in math will help him more than a 99% in verbal I think. I agree to just submit this test to schools may be a better approach. It’s a strong set of scores good for any school I believe. Focus on other parts of his application. Good luck!