Seems that I cannot get my 9th grader tested because he is in an independent study program that is not authorized to give the test, but the local schools wont allow him to test at their site because he has accommodations that require an extra proctor.
Our independent study counselor is trying to see if they will allow her to proctor my son’s exam at the local school site, but I don’t have much hope. It’s not looking to good for the PSAT either.
Anyone have any luck with homeschool - APs - and accommodated testing?
My son is homeschooled and has accommodations. He has done SAT, PSAT and SAT subject tests. He has not done any APs, so it may be different. At first we asked the College Board to help us find a testing site and once they did (it was not our local school), we asked that he be allowed to do his testing there from then on, as that school was very easy to work with. The College Board asked for the names of several schools in our area and they went from there to find the testing site. The PSAT was taken at the local school.
@ColoSky I think our issues is that my son has 1:1 testing which takes an extra proctor. The CB gave us the names of two schools but I actually called our local school that was not on their list because I knew they took homeschoolers. My older son graduated from that school and had homeschoolers in his music theory test. Because they knew my older son (he took 12 APs) I hoped they would work with my younger one. They were willing until they saw the accommodations.
I was just BCCed on an email conversation between out independent study councilor and the AP coordinator about letting our counselor proctor. The CB said that this was an acceptable option. They just need to let her on site and give her a room! Fingers crossed…
Well, I managed to take the PSAT at a nearby highschool and will do the same for the SAT. They have programs set up where homeschoolers or small private school students can come and take exams like those, but they have to pay. I’d love to take some AP exams and will try to do so but my older sister managed to take the AP Chemistry via schools. It’s helpful to ask family and friends of various different schools where they might offer. Schools have become more and more accepting of homeschoolers.
Hi @RavenclawStudent
As I have mentioned already we do not have an issue with taking any exams. We have issues with disability accommodations and the fact that the CB has awarded my son one on one testing, 100% time, extra breaks, and the option to type his AP answers. The local high school and testing center would not normally have a problem with outside testers, many use this school for testing, but they do have a problem providing an extra person for 1:1 proctoring for a student that is not one of their own and who they are not obligated to accommodate.
Also, with my son’s accommodations he would need a two day SAT test session which would also be a problem. This is not a typical home school situation. It is a disability situation.
All is well. The CB has given permission for our independent study counselor to come to the school to proctor and the school has agreed to offer a room and accommodations. It took a lot of work but we seem to have a solution. Hopefully we have all the same teachers involved for the remaining high school years.
@ColoSky did your child have 100% time or one on one testing? We have been unable to easily register for the subject test online. We have been sent back to the SSD coordinator for a testing location. I assumed that since it is only a single subject test, it would be easy to do at a regular testing center…
My son has +50% for some parts and +100% for others. While he was not awarded one-on-one testing, that is what ended up happening for the SAT, PSAT and the SAT IIs. For his first batch of tests (2 SAT IIs) the College Board found the school for us and contacted them on our behalf. After that, we requested that school–the counselor from the school gave us the code that we needed. I was worried if we’d find a school willing to take not only a homeschooler not from in-district but also accommodate his needs. It all worked out really well for us. I hope it does for you as well!
@LKnomad, my son was able to take AP exams with accommodations. We went to a small local private PSP known for working with homeschoolers. My kid was actually the first kid that they even offered to do outside testing with, and they kindly volunteered to give the AP exams a go. I can’t remember the process, but basically, I tried to coordinate College Board and the school’s communication so the admin (one person) at the school knew what to do for accommodations.
I would try smaller religious schools, if possible.
My son had time and a half, keyboarding, breaks as needed (for diabetes) and maybe one other accommodation. All his testing was done one on one with no other students present.
I’m a homeschooler and have a permanently injured dominant wrist that makes it painful to write for long periods of time, and this will be my second year taking AP exams with a computer accommodation. We were lucky enough to find a local school with a nice AP coordinator who has gone out of her way to help me, let me come in a month ahead of the exam to get used to the computer, etc. This year I’ll be taking the AP Spanish exam during the late testing period because their language lab will be full. I will be the only one taking the test at the time, so they’ll be spending a proctor just on me and I’m not even one of their students!
This is a big public school, though not the one I’m zoned for. Besides calling around all the schools in a reasonable radius, the only thing you can really do is to try calling the College Board and telling them you feel you’re being discriminated against. We definitely have just as much a right as any other student to take AP exams, even if we ARE homeschooled and using accommodations! Hopefully they would help you, though I have to say that they were far from helpful when we couldn’t find a school at first. Actually, the College Board has never been very nice to me–they took four or five months to approve my accommodation last year, which was one reason we had so much trouble finding a last-minute school to test at.
Thanks everyone for your replies. We are all set for the AP Human Geo. Paid the (ugh) $93 today and are set with an outside proctor. Barely made the deadline, but all seems to be well. Boy that was a lot of hoops. This kid better study!
We are homeschoolers and have thankfully found a test site willing to administer accommodations. But how do we deal with the NSA form?