I've seen the test.  I took one similar to it in seventh grade and then AGAIN my junior year of high school for American History.  They're basic questions.
136648
Hmmmm ...can you take the test in Spanish? :)  Because I very much doubt if our new potential citizens could be bothered learning enough English to understand the questions ....
448529
I'm also an inncer-city teacher and I can relate to your concerns.  Part of the problem is that the tests are supposedly designed to measure students' grasp of underlying concepts.  But that's not what they actually measure.  They are mostly word problems, so in the end they are primarily testing the students' verbal skills.  A very bright math student who can manipulate numbers expertly, or a very slow student who can demonstrate understanding using manipulatives, will both fail a standardized test if they can't read and comprehend the test questions.\n\nI've found that my urban students have a lot of trouble with word problems.  One teaching strategy that I had some success with was teaching them how to "decode" test questions.  In other words, I literally gave them lists of key terms in word problems and what they mean.  So at the very least, they knew that if the question asked "how many more," they had to subtract.  But I'm talking about 3rd graders here.  I don't know how well that would apply to higher level math.\n\nThe bottom line is that if you want test results, you have to make some time to teach test prep.  I would guess that your kids who can't sit still during the test are feeling really intimidated.  Often, kids who are perfectly capable of doing the work just freeze up when they see a test.  The only real way to combat this is to familiarize the kids with the test format.  Help them to understand how the test is structured, and give them tools for attacking the questions that they CAN answer.  It's important for the kids to understand that even if questions 1 and 2 look impossible, question 3 might be something you know.  So don't get bogged down.  It's stuff that seems intuitive to adults, but children who are not accustomed to feeling successful don't automatically have these "habits of mind," if you will.\n\nI say, take some portion of the day or week to do test prep.  Help the kids make the connection between the engaging, hands-on stuff and the test questions.  It's really the only way to raise scores.
634893
I was not a very good student but did manage to pass all of the Regents exams I had to take. I used the Regents review books you can buy that give several years of past exams. Practice with those - as many as you can. I don't remember if answers are given, but even if not, you can find a way to see if your answers are correct. If nothing else, check your answers with the information in your textbooks. It may also be helpful if you can, to get a few of your classmates together and study together. You could each do some of the sample or past tests and then get together to compare your answers. Also test each other. By testing someone else - where you have the answers - this helps you learn too. The group support can help a lot.  I appreciate your strong desire not to let your family down. Wonderful. Also... it reminds me of story where a visitor to NY asks a man on the street how to get to Carnegie Hall. The New Yorker answers:  "Practice."  Good luck. YOU CAN DO IT!!
132428
good for you, im 24 and ive never used it its a complete waste of time, im wondering when schools will stop teaching that crap, and teach something useful
484269
Like most standardized tests, it's harder for some kids than others.  If you've had pretty good grades up to this point it will be easier than if you've not done well.  \n\nThere's  places to help you prepare and books to help you study.  You can also take the test more than once, just in case.  The questions range from things you should most certainly already know to things that you may not have even covered.  It is designed so that 99% of the kids that take it will not complete all of the questions and will not get them all correct.  \n\nThe point of the test is to see what level you are currently working at and to ensure that the curriculum of the prospective school is not too hard or too easy for you.\n\nDon't panic, prepare for the test, be well rested and fed on test day and relax.  \n\nGood Luck!
100217
UGH, I am taking the ISATS too, 2morrow is also our last day! I'm in 6th grade and my teacher told us the ISAT was important because it determined if u passed or not. If u want to email me, email me @ starcammi@yahoo.com. Hope u pass, don't worry it will all be over SOON.
288790
I have taught students from Germany and they have asked me if people speak English in my state. They have asked me all sorts of seemingly ignorant questions about America when they have spent their entire lives watching American movies. I don't think this is because Germans don't learn about America or are particularly stupid. I have come to understand it is the nature of young adults. They are totally absorbed with themselves and do not take in ANY information unless it is directly pertinent to them. As for junior year, that is the year that focuses on American history and American literature. If you had been there earlier or in senior year, you would have learned World History and either World or British literature.
118691
I took AP lit when i was in high school  (c/o 2004).  The answers were in the work book that we had.  So you need to find a workbook from 2002.  It'll prolly be best to ask a teacher you know who taught it.  I don't think you can get them in stores or anything.  The collegeboard website may help also.
457861
I have one you can have its on the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Its seven pages and it was for a upper level Medeval history class i got a B on it so of u want it let me know!
131804
http://www.tea.state.tx.us/student.assessment/resources/online/2003/grade5/math.htm\n\n\ni don't know if they have a more recent version, but this is a decent practice test...\n\nhttp://www.tea.state.tx.us/student.assessment/resources/release/taks/\n\nthis seems better than my previous suggestion...good luck  ;-)
227128
That would depend on your school.  My sixteen year old and 12 year old haven't had to take one.  They were placed on their academic grades.  we live in texas.
301231
not at all , it is commons sense questions.  Go to you local library and there should be a practice test book on it.  Kind of like the ones for college
143765
my impression from doing practice exams and taking it back in 2000/2001 is that the tests can really very from year to year. sometimes they'll give you harder questions with formulas or easier questions without. the test i took turned out to be pretty different from any of the practice tests i took (I was just studying on some hand-me-down Kaplan books -- Luckily I got a 4 anyway). I do remember that they had a graphing calculator portion of the test -- which means you can program it in and at least have all the formulas with you on test day. In any case, it's better to memorize more than less.
10268
There were so many throughout my schoolife its hard to choose. I'd have to say though that without a doubt it was US history and World History in High School.  It wasnt so much the subject matter as it was the teacher.  You know what I mean....i'm sure you've had a small handful of teachers who really made a difference in your life.\n\nIn my US History class my teacher would make us reinact scenes from history using props and putting on plays. He also would come in dressed appropriately with the timeframe we were studying (like dressing like a mountain man when we were studying the frontier period). He even made out different versions of the same test for students to choose (like essay form for people good with words and True/False n multiple choice for people who liked that form of testing).\n\nMy world history teacher was friggin hilarious. He would sit and tell stories about his childhood growing up in the area and all his messed up practical jokes he played on people. He was the kinda guy who was always willing to listen and help any way he could. Super funny and nice guy....
374910
My daughter, in Fourth grad, aced the TAKS.  I really think that it is detrimental to education to teach to a test.  Kids - like you - don't get to learn history or the arts - the teachers must teach to TAKS.\n\nIt's sad.\n\nI wish Rick Perry or GW would take the TAKS - I bet they wouldn't pass!\n\nGood luck!
214210
I think these days, teachers are being forced to "teach towards the test" only.  In my state specifically, being an intellectually well-rounded student means nothing as long as your state test scores look good.  Previously, students were learning to successfully function in society, as well as to do well on tests, but the inverse seems to be in practice today.  No one is teaching courtesy, chivalry, or common sense to kids these days, which I think are imperative to becoming good citizens.  Teachers, in my opinion, are really getting a raw deal now.  Reproaching students by calling parents or punishing them doesn't seem to be working either.  OK, getting back to the teaching topic... one excellent teaching technique is to become as personable with students as possible.  That, in turn, will give students an initiative to learn.  I have had some horrible experiences with teachers that just don't care and have expressed this to students.  I definitely think that teachers these days are on the defensive and this a stark contrast from 20 years ago when the teacher acted more like a second mother to students than a disciplinarian only.
617557
I think one of the biggest shocks to me was the amount of self-discipline I had to have in college. Our professors didn't give us homework every night, give us quizzes and review sheets. It was basically, "Here's the book, read, we'll have 3 tests." I was surprised that I was responsable for so much of the learning myself. The professors usually didn't teach us anything that appeared on the tests. What else? There was a lot more reading than in high school too. Homework usually involved reading chapters in a textbook instead of worksheets or problems.