Standardized Testing

All 10th grade students take the PSAT in October. The PSAT assesses skills in three testing areas (reading, writing and language, and math) and is designed specifically to measure reasoning and critical thinking skills..

All 11th grade students will be given the option of taking the PSAT/NMSQT in October. During junior year, students can participate in the National Merit Scholarship Qualifying Test (NMSQT) for potential scholarship money.

Sample PSAT/NMSQT questions

The PSAT/NMSQT measure students’ academic performance to ensure that they are meeting expected learning goals. Additionally, these tests are good practice for college-bound students planning to take the SAT.

Students in 10th grade are given the opportunity to take the PreACT in the spring. PreACT offers students an early experience with ACT tests items, provides a predicted ACT test score, and offers a wealth of information to help students get the start they need to be college-ready.

Anchored on the ACT college and career readiness standards, PreACT assessments help educators, students and parents, identify areas of academic strength and opportunity. Students may opt to have their information shared with colleges and scholarship agencies when they take the PreACT, providing greater opportunities for recruitment and scholarship awards.

PreACT Overview

College bound juniors are encouraged to take the SAT  &/or ACT in the spring of their junior year. The SAT is an aptitude test, whereas the ACT is an achievement test. Read about difference between the SAT and ACT here.

To see differences in testing format, visit the “SAT vs ACT” page below. As a general rule, students should plan to take the test(s) at least twice. The benefit of this is colleges will typically either accept the highest score or will “superscore” meaning they will take the highest section scores from different test dates and combine them. LCCS is not a testing site so students will need to register using the links below and choose a testing location. Fall of senior year is when many students choose to take the SAT or ACT again, to try to boost their scores.