News
Chicago High Schools Ranked Among Best in Country
In the most recent study conducted by US News & World Report, Walter Payton College Prep High School in Chicago was ranked the fifth best high public high school in the country. The 2022 report ranked 18,000 schools across the U.S. based on factors such as college readiness, curriculum breadth, underserved student performance, graduation rate, and state assessment performance.
Of other schools in Chicago, Northside College Prep came 31st, Jones College Prep came in at 51st, and Whitney Young Magnet High School was 67th.
Walter Payton has ranked as a top school in Illinois for several years. This year, using data from Niche, high schools were ranked according to similar criteria including culture and diversity, health and safety, extracurriculars, and academic performance. The top four schools were Walter Payton, Northside College Prep, Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy in Aurora, and Whitney Young Magnet High School.
Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
CPS Opens Welcome Center for Migrant Families
Chicago Public Schools has announced the opening of the Welcome Center at Roberto Clemente Community Academy, the first of its planned centers aimed at providing resources to migrant families. The center gives families assistance with enrolling children in school, measuring English language level, and accessing health care and social services. According to CPS leadership, the welcome center will allow for the assessment of a student’s needs and provide that child with placement in a suitable learning environment.
CPS has partnered with the Department of Family and Support Services as well as Erie Family Health Centers to provide health screenings and necessary vaccinations for school enrollment. In addition, the Welcome Center will connect families with bilingual services and mental health resources. Walk-ins are not accepted, and appointments should be made ahead of time.
A new model in Chicago, CPS will consider expanding the program depending on ongoing need and success. These supports already exist for all CPS students, but the Welcome Center is designed to consolidate them for families needing extra support as they transition to the city.
Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
Considerations When Applying to Test-Optional Colleges
An increased number of colleges and universities across the country went to a test-optional admissions process during the COVID-19 pandemic, and it appears that many of these schools are making the changes permanent. In a test-optional landscape, there are several important factors to consider to optimize your college application.
An important consideration is that your grades may be weighted more if you do not submit a test score. If you do not feel your grades are indicative of your academic potential, a strong test score would augment your application. Alternatively, if your grades are strong and you tend to score poorly on tests, an admissions exam may not be as appropriate. The same can be said for extracurricular activities and achievements–keep in mind that these parts of your application may be more closely scrutinized in the event that you do not submit a test score.
Additionally, be sure to check if the school to which you are applying is test-optional (meaning you get to decide if you submit any scores), test-flexible (meaning they will consider additional tests other than the SAT or the ACT), or test-blind (meaning they will not consider test scores even if you submit them). Some schools that are test-optional for admissions require test scores to be considered for merit-based scholarships, so make sure you understand the policy of each school.
Understanding the various options available to you will allow to you choose a path forward that will best highlight your skills and interests to the admissions committee.
Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
CPS High School Admissions Test Dates (2023-24 School Year)
Chicago Public Schools (CPS) has announced the test dates for the High School Admissions Test (HSAT). This year, the HSAT will be taken by CPS students on October 11th. Non-CPS students will have the option to take the HSAT on October 14th, 15th, or 21st. All test dates have been listed below.
HSAT Test Dates
CPS Students:
Wednesday, October 11
Non-CPS Students:
Saturday, October 14
Sunday, October 15
Saturday, October 12
The HSAT will be offered in-school for CPS students. Non-CPS students will take the HSAT at a designated CPS testing site. Applicants will apply using the GoCPS online application portal.
Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
Will You Take the Digital or Paper SAT?
You may be wondering if you will take the digital or the paper-pencil version of the SAT. In short, it will depend on your location and your class year!
International testing centers have transitioned fully to the digital SAT, so if you do not live in the USA, Puerto Rico, or the US Virgin Islands, you will be taking the test digitally.
Otherwise, it will depend on several factors. If you are a member of the class of 2024, you will take the paper test. If you are in the class of 2025 and taking the SAT in the fall of your junior year or earlier, you will also take the paper test. Members of the class of 2025 who plan to test in the spring of their junior year or later will take the digital version, as will members of the class of 2026 and all future classes.
Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
CPS and CPL Summer Programming Begins
CPS summer programming started on Monday, June 26th and will run until August 4th. These include academic programs to provide students with extra academic support, enrichment programs to challenge students with collaborative and creative thinking, transition programs to support students with academic transitions, and athletic programs. While registration for most programs is closed, a list of CPS programs currently running can be found here.
CPS is also offering meals Monday-Friday from 10am to 12 pm between June 20th and August 9th. Children up to the age of 18 are able to receive meals, even if not enrolled in CPS. Additionally, students enrolled in summer school programming will receive breakfast and lunch during the day. More details on the summer LunchStop program can be found here.
In addition, CPS is partnering with the Chicago Public Library for literacy programming. Library programming for kids and teens takes place throughout the city and is listed here.
Anna Jordan, Tutoring Coordinator
anna@testprepchicago.com
(312) 848-1266
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