News
CPS Graduates Earn Record Amount in Scholarships
The CPS graduating class of 2023 earned a record amount in college scholarships this year - more than $2 billion, compared to $1.5 billion last year. In another first, every high school reported earning some amount of scholarship money.
It’s welcome news for a graduating class whose high school experience was plagued by pandemic closures and remote learning. The district made extra efforts to hold informational sessions for seniors as well as trainings for schools looking to provide their students with added support.
Options to make college more affordable encourage students to not only attend college, but complete their degrees. Although the general trend in the last 10 years shows more CPS students enrolling in college, the percentage of students who actually earn their degrees has not increased dramatically. The district is thus focusing efforts on getting students through college, as well as encouraging students to consider technical and career options.
Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
TPC Selective Enrollment Point Calculator Updated
Test Prep Chicago’s free point calculator for selective enrollment high schools has been updated according to last year’s cut-off scores, which increased from the previous year.
The admissions process for Selective Enrollment High Schools consists of two 450 point parts (900 total points). The two parts are:
7th grade grades in Reading, Math, Science and Social Studies: 450 points
CPS High School Admissions Test: 450 points
To use the point calculator, enter your student’s 7th grade grades and select the socio-economic tier in which you live. If you’re not sure which tier that is, the point calculator will direct you to the CPS Locator. Once your student’s grades and CPS tier have been entered, click the “calculate” button.
The calculator will then show you the points your student has earned based on their 7th grade grades. Underneath this is a table showing the exam score they will need to achieve based on their grades, tier neighborhood, and the total points required by each selective enrollment high school based on last year’s cutoff scores. This includes a breakdown of the minimum total score required, exam points needed, as well as the exam score needed.
Test Prep Chicago has a similar calculator for Academic Center admissions, based on 5th grade grades and group tiers. To find out the scores your student would need for admission to Chicago’s Academic Centers, click here.
Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
Using GPTZero to Combat Plagiarism with ChatGPT
The use of ChatGPT for plagiaristic purposes has been the fear of many educators since the AI tool was released in November of 2022. To combat this issue, Princeton University student Edward Tian has created software he believes to be the solution. Tian’s app, GPTZero, was developed in December of 2022 when the coder took it upon himself to create an app that can determine if a body of text has been created by a human or AI. Tian created the app to protect individuals in the midst of a changing technological landscape stating, “I think it is important for people to bet on independent parties to build the safeguards for their technologies.”
The technology works by measuring two factors: perplexity and burstiness. Perplexity refers to the degree of randomness present in a text. Human-created work often uses language in a more chaotic, disorganized way than AI. Hence, the more random a body of text is, the more likely it is to be human-generated. Burstiness is the second factor that refers to the complexity and diversity of sentence and language structure within a text. AI-generated material is much more uniform in style than human-created text. When individuals write, they vary their structure which creates natural “bursts” throughout the writing. AI has not been able to effectively emulate this ability. Thus, using these mechanisms in tandem, GPTZero is able to effectively determine if a text is AI generated with 98% accuracy.
While 98% effective, many have criticized GPTZero for its inability to distinguish texts that are a mix of human and AI-created. Tian emphasizes the limitations of his app stating that he doesn’t want anyone “making definitive decisions” in regard to the app’s ability to predict AI-generated work. Tian simply seeks to preserve the integrity of authentic composition by thwarting ChatGPT’s potential misuse.
Kayley Horton, Tutoring Coordinator
kayley@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
Proposed changes to the process of holding CPS students back
Chicago Public Schools are considering a change to the process of holding students back. During the first two years of the pandemic, the school district did not hold any students back, due to the disruptions caused by remote learning and school closures. Now, long-term changes are being considered to help address declining rates in academic performance.
A new proposal would end the use of test scores when deciding whether to advance a student to the next grade. Instead, grades in science and social studies courses would be considered in their place, in addition to math and reading.
This proposal is part of a years-long trend of relaxing guidelines for grade promotion. Holding students back has been shown to harm rather than help their prospects, and can result in frustration and stigmatization for affected students, who are disproportionately Black and Latino. Additionally, retention has been correlated with increased risk that a student will drop out of school completely.
Focusing on a student’s course grades rather than standardized test scores also allows a school to support students with direct interventions that can more effectively address individual needs and avoid any surprises when it comes to test scoring.
Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
Proposed CPS Budget Adds Teaching Positions, Reduces Budget for 20% of Schools
According to a budget recently proposed by the school district, while the overall CPS budget will not substantially change, additional funds will be allocated to providing instructors in high-need schools.Teaching positions will be added especially to support English language learners and special education classrooms.
The proposal, which was released by the CPS administration, comes as the district continues to grapple with declining enrollment and a persistent budget deficit. School budgets will grow per student; however, due to declining enrollment rates, approximately 20% of CPS schools can expect to see a reduction in their budgets this fall.
With the expiration date for federal pandemic relief funding coming up in 2024, the long-term financial trends of CPS schools are unclear, but the new school year’s budget represents a shift away from enrollment-based funding. Although enrollment is still a factor, other needs are being weighted more heavily, such as student demographics and special programming requirements.
Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
AP Course Decisions
For high school students, taking Advanced Placement (AP) classes can offer numerous benefits such as gaining college credit, improving academic skills, and strengthening college applications. However, it can be challenging to decide how many AP classes to take.
AP classes are designed to provide college-level coursework to high school students. These courses offer students an opportunity to explore challenging subjects in greater depth and prepare them for college-level academic rigor. However, the workload of AP courses is typically higher than that of regular high school courses. Students should consider their academic ability based on their performance in previous academic years, including their grades, course difficulty, and study habits. Students must also factor in their workload, including from extracurricular activities.
Another factor to consider is a student's future goals. If a student is planning to attend a highly competitive college or pursue a career in a challenging field, taking multiple AP courses can demonstrate their academic readiness and preparedness. Even so, colleges take other factors into account, and there is no guaranteed number of AP courses that will substitute for a well-rounded and individual background.
Counselors, researchers, and consultants agree that it’s far more important to select a schedule that will be manageable to a student based on their workload, academic level, and future goals, rather than loading their schedule with as many AP courses as possible.
Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
Overview of the Digital SAT
In the near future, students will only be able to take the SAT via a digital format. Last November, a select portion of SAT students were offered the chance to test out this format by taking the digital SAT. Among this group, 80% of students found the new test taking process to be less stressful than the paper version which was previously the standard. The College Board began offering the digital SAT to international students in March of 2023 and plans to fully implement it in March of 2024 for class of 2025 juniors (current sophomores).
The digital SAT boasts a number of benefits. Among these, the digital interface allows the test to adapt to each student. With an adaptive test model, each section independently adapts to the student’s level of ability, making the resulting score more reliable. Additional benefits include shortening the test-taking time period from 3 hours to 2 hours and making scores available to students just days after they take the exam. The digital SAT will also offer a range of online tools students may use at their disposal. These tools include an on-screen timer, elimination tools which allow students to cross out incorrect answers, and the ability to flag questions for review so that students can go back to check them.
The content of the test will remain essentially the same with minor format changes. For the math section, students will have 44 questions to complete in 70 minutes. Students will have access to a graphic calculator on the screen during this portion of the test. During the reading and writing section, students will have 64 minutes to answer 54 questions regarding reading comprehension and grammar. The digital SAT will make reading questions shorter and reinstitute sentence completion questions. Each section of the test will still be worth 800 points and students will continue to have access to a reference sheet for formulas. Altogether, the digital SAT looks to streamline the test taking process while adapting to the changing landscape of technology based assessments.
Kayley Horton, Tutoring Coordinator
kayley@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
College Enrollment Still Down from Pre-Pandemic Levels
Rates of college enrollment, which decreased during the COVID-19 pandemic, have yet to return to pre-pandemic levels. Across the country, the rate of undergraduate enrollment dropped 8 percent between 2019 and 2022, marking the steepest decline on record, and while admissions rates are increasing slightly, they have yet to return to 2018 levels.
Despite predictions that the decline was only temporary, it appears that many of those who opted out of college at the beginning of the pandemic have decided not to return to school. While those who don’t attend college typically have a lower average earning potential, many are questioning the benefits of attending colleges and universities when tuition prices continue to rise and rates of student debt are at an all-time high.
Fewer graduates from college could lead to shortages in certain fields, such as healthcare and engineering, while the market for computer science skills has steadily increased. Additionally, many young people are pursuing education outside of the traditional four-year degree; trade schools and apprenticeship programs, for example, are on the rise. The pandemic, which threw a wrench in the plans of many, may have caused a lasting shift in the way young people consider their future.
Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
Selective Enrollment High School Cut Off Scores Rise
High School Entrance Exam scores are on the rise for 8th-grade students applying to Selective Enrollment High Schools. CPS recently released their Selective Enrollment cut-off scores for the 2023-2024 school year which details an increase in average point totals and minimum scores required for eligibility. This increase will affect applicants of all Tiers across the board.
According to the information provided by CPS, Tier 4 students must achieve a perfect 900 points to place into Walter Payton College Prep or Northside College Prep. This cut-off score remains stagnant for Payton while it has increased by 4 points at Northside in the last year. Similarly, Whitney Young has seen an increase across the board from Tier 1 to Tier 4 students. Tier 1 students must score a minimum of 834 points to be eligible which is up dramatically from 816.5 the year prior. Tier 4 students must score a minimum of 893, up 9 points from last year’s cut-off of 884. Other Selective Enrollment high schools such as Jones College Prep and Lane Tech College Prep have also seen surges in cutoff scores, though their Tier 4 eligibility requirement leaves a small margin for error.
Tier 4 cut-off scores have soared the most rapidly at King Jr. College Prep, Lindblom Math and Science Academy, South Shore International College Prep, and Brooks College Prep with some schools seeing as much as a 21% increase. Previously requiring 529 points for eligibility at Lindblom, the school now demands a score of 643, a 114-point difference. King’s requirement was raised from 501.5 to 600, followed by Southshore which now requires 613 points as opposed to last year’s 529. Lastly, Brooks’ Tier 4 cutoff has increased 46 points this testing season with a new standard of 718 points required. Because of the increasing demand for applicants to achieve higher scores, students who score under 600 points on the High School Admissions Test will not be permitted on the waitlist, making it more difficult than ever for students to test into the school of their choice.
Kayley Horton, Tutoring Coordinator
kayley@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
Technology in the Classroom
As technology continues to explode, educators are doing their best to utilize the expanding field to benefit their students in the classroom. Whether it’s implementing personal computers for students, engaging in coding instruction, or using app-based progress tracking, nearly 90% of teachers claim that utilizing research regarding the integration of technology in their teaching strategies has enriched their student’s educational experience. However, research has found that educators lack a common definition for “technology integration” regarding student achievement thus leading to large discrepancies in the education system.
According to a research study that took place between 2010 and 2021 many educators use technology integration as a means by which to enhance their student’s overall education through the use of enrichment tools. For other educators, utilizing technological advancements simply means allowing their students the opportunity to use new tools without implementing proper scaffolds to help them benefit from them in the long term. There is also inconsistency amongst educators concerning the degree to which technology should be used and the ethicality of such changes. This poses a serious problem for students because educators must have a common understanding of the functions of technology-based learning in order to effectively teach in accordance with changing standards.
Research suggests that to combat this discrepancy, teachers must first be trained to understand the value of technology in the changing world before using it for instructional purposes. Professional development programs are necessary to implement this paradigm shift so that educators have a common lens through which to apply these changes. This includes training teachers to learn what tools add value to their classrooms while averting buzzword-heavy trends that do not support student needs. With a more definitive standard for how technology should be integrated in the classroom, educators will be able to make choices for their students that are grounded in evidence-based research rather than speculation. This will lead to a more constructive use of funds as well as a cohesive experience for students from year to year.
Kayley Horton, Tutoring Coordinator
kayley@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
Sources:
https://www.edweek.org/technology/what-weve-learned-about-technology-and-learning-in-the-last-3-years/2023/03
https://edtechmagazine.com/k12/article/2022/09/benefits-integrating-technology-todays-k-12-classrooms-perfcon
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/12/11/education/screens-classroom-tool-temptation.html