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Inklings News

SBAC: A new kind of Test

SBAC: A new kind of Test

Jack Zeldes, Staff Writer May 26, 2015

As I walked into the language lab for SBAC this morning, my expectation was for it to be an easy and short standardized test. What I found was a lengthy and challenging assessment unlike the review we...

Class of 2016 gets thrown an academic curveball

Class of 2016 gets thrown an academic curveball

Jack Zeldes, Staff Writer April 6, 2015

I was fine with being in the Class of 2016 when we had to take CAPT. I didn’t mind being in the Class of 2016 when we had to write our research papers sophomore year. I was even fine with being in the...

Graphic by Julia Schorr '16

SBAC leaves students dreaming of CAPT

Alison Morrison, Staff Writer March 2, 2015

Ah, CAPT. Those pesky tests in mid-March that left sophomores drained while the rest of the school caught a few extra hours of sleep. I relished those days when the earliest I had to be in school was a...

Sophomores overwhelmed by academic developments

Sophomores overwhelmed by academic developments

Jimmy Ray Stagg, Web Creative Director May 30, 2014

Throughout high school, there’s a kind of stigma around complaints. The seniors reserve the right to refute any complaint, having “been there, done that.” Juniors can brush the comments off due to...

Sophomores prepare for CAPT

Sophomores prepare for CAPT

Grace McCarthy, Staff Writer March 3, 2014

This year’s sophomore class is expected to take a double hit of standardized testing. Teachers are intensely preparing students; as this is the last grade to take CAPT tests, they aim to finish with...

New test sparks mixed reactions

Ben Goldschlager, Web News Editor February 28, 2014

Next year, students in grades three through eight and 11 will take Smarter Balanced Assessments (SBAC), set to replace the Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT) in mathematics and English literacy....

A Smarter Balance?

A Smarter Balance?

Nicole DeBlasi, Web Managing Editor October 10, 2013

On Oct. 7, the Westport Board of Education met at Staples. One of the most pressing issues discussed was the implementation of a new standardized test called Smarter Balanced Assessments, which will replace...

Alex & Grace’s Top Ten of 2010- What We Will Miss Most About Staples High School

June 23, 2010
Alex Nitkin and Grace Shay '10 share what they will miss most about Staples High next fall.

Teaching To the Test Hinders Learning

March 28, 2010
The Inklings Editorial for the March 26 issue discusses the topic of teaching to state testing
Inklinations: What do you think about teaching to the CAPT test?

Inklinations: What do you think about teaching to the CAPT test?

March 28, 2010
Hear what students and faculty had to say about teaching to the CAPT test
The PPSAT, taken by sophomores in mid-March is helpful in preparing for the PSATs and SATs

PPSAT Shown Valuable in the Pre-College Process

March 12, 2010
Three fourths of the sophmore class continues thier testing after CAPT, spending 3 hours at school on a Saturday afternoon for a PSAT simulation.
Above, sophomores hard at work on their CAPT testing. The final day of testing, which was scheduled for March 11, has been postponed by a week. |Photo by Cole Manley '11.

CAPT Testing Delayed Due to Lack of Test Booklets

March 10, 2010
Upon discovering that Staples never received a sufficient number of test booklets, the final day of CAPT, which was scheduled for March 11, has been pushed back to March 18.
Sophomores "work steadily, but don't rush" as they take the Interdisciplinary Writing, Session II test.

CAPT Day Three

March 4, 2010

Inside CAPT room 2032, sophomores took the Interdisciplinary Writing, Session II test on the third day of testing. Meanwhile, freshmen, juniors and seniors enjoyed a later start to the school day....

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