How To Prepare For The ISEB Pre-Test
Education is continually evolving and it can be hard for most parents to keep up. We understand this predicament which is why this article has been prepared to aid you and your child in preparing for this important educational milestone. Read on to find out:
What is the ISEB pre-test?
What does the test cover?
How can you best prepare for it?
What Is The ISEB Pre-Test?
The acronym (ISEB) stands for the Independent Schools Examination Board and is commonly taken in year 6 or 7. This is before entry to specific British independent schools. ISEB is a widely used and respected online test for students and the result of the ISEB pre-test is almost always considered during the admission process.
The test is standardised by age and can be taken at the child’s current school or a testing centre of choice. Parents have to remember that this can only be taken once per academic year on an online setup. So part of preparing the child for this is ensuring that they are healthy and well on the day of the exam.
Children take the ISEB pre-test on a computer. The actual exam is timed and once you answer a question, you cannot go back to change that. Each item also needs to be answered. The way this has been constructed is adaptive, meaning that it progresses according to the child’s performance. If the child is continually giving correct answers, the test will give out more difficult questions. But if the child seems to be having difficulty, the questions given will also become easier.
What Does The Test Cover?
The first thing to know is the pre-test is composed of multiple choice questions. It is divided into four subject areas, namely:
* English: this includes reading comprehension, sentence completion, spelling, and punctuation
* Maths: the content is in line with the National Curriculum
* Non-Verbal Reasoning: including shape analogies, horizontal codes
* Verbal Reasoning: common words, antonyms, letter transfer, word combinations, and number codes
Each subject has a time allotment. English runs for 25 minutes while Mathematics should be completed in 50 minutes. Non-Verbal Reasoning is given 32 minutes and Verbal Reasoning is taken within 36 minutes. The entire test, if taken within the same day, should be done in 2.5 hours. The four exams can also be taken at separate times.
There are practice questions at the beginning of the Maths, Non-Verbal and Verbal tests. This is to ensure that the students understand such questions. The results of the test are then marked by the secondary school since the ISEB does not dictate the pass mark. ISEB only provides a standard-age-score for each subject since the age of the child as well as her performance are both taken into account. The choice of who to admit or invite for an interview is left to the school and this all depends on their analysis of the test results.
How can you best prepare your child for the ISEB pre-test?
You will not find actual past papers for the online ISEB test. There are however familiarisation tests available and this will assist in making the child more comfortable in taking the pre-test. It will help the student get used to the layout and the types of questions in the exam.
Aside from the familiarisation test, there are also several online tests available. These can be used for review and practise. Just make sure your child doesn’t overdo it as too much pressure can be detrimental to your child’s mental wellbeing. Preparation for ISEB should be targeted so that the questions that the child needs the most help with are properly addressed. Be mindful of how your child does in the Verbal and Non-Verbal Reasoning since it might be the first time that they are encountering such questions.
To support your child, assist them in developing vital skills in reading and numeracy. The best way to do this is to read to and with your child on a consistent basis. As you do, you help them to comprehend the story while unlocking new words to add to her vocabulary. It doesn’t matter what kind of reading materials you go through for as long as your child reads a wide range of literature. This can include short and long stories, poems, newspaper articles, autobiographies and so forth. You might opt to follow their interests especially if you have a reluctant reader. As your child uncovers the adventure within the pages of the book, it will soon become difficult to get their hands off one. Believe me when I say that children naturally love learning and the best way to feed that desire is through books, books, and more books.
Maths skills are best developed when regularly practised. We cannot overemphasise the importance of encouraging them to develop strong numeracy skills. Several advanced Maths questions depend on this. For as long as your child has a firm grasp of the method, they will be able to mentally compute for answers with practise.
Finally, help your child to be as comfortable as possible with the computer interface. This should not be too much of a problem since young people nowadays can manipulate gadgets way better than adults. Just be sure that their typing skills are at sufficient and that the basic computer keys are familiar to them.
A child who knows how to persevere under pressure will most likely do well in any exam. So more than preparing your child academically, also prepare them emotionally. Remind them to read questions thoroughly and to pace themselves so that they do not take up too much time on one item/ question. Best of luck to your child and I sincerely hope that they do well in the ISEB pre-test!
The Tutoress