This year the College Board has transitioned to the digital version of the PSAT. This test is adaptive, meaning that the questions are adjusted to better suit the user’s abilities to answer certain questions.
In the first module it will be the same amount of difficulty for everyone;however in the second module the system will analyze the users performance on certain questions and provide more similar questions to the ones they got correct. This is in an effort to ensure better scores for all students.
When asked her thoughts about the shift from paper to online, and the new adaptive questions, senior Emma Conde said, “I think that’s pretty nice, because it definitely makes you less stressed out. I think continuously having questions that are hard, you’re going to get more anxious, and that’s going to make your results worse. So I think having it more adaptive is nice, definitely.”
After taking the PSAT for three years prior, she feels that having questions adjust to her capability is a beneficial change.
Some students disagree with the system of adaptive questions, because it can lock you at a lower score. The system needs to provide a significant amount of easier questions due to poor performance on the first module.
If this is the case then regardless of how well a person performs in the second module, the reason was because the questions were easier so that in itself lowers the score.
Junior Siyona Choudhry said, “I think one disadvantage is that it can make the grading seem really weird, and just like, give unfair advantages, because some because people could have gotten more answers correct overall, but because all the ones that they got correct might have been the easier ones could lead to some skewed grading. And just like, get them a lower score overall, or, like, the opposite, like, yeah, so I just think that’s a disadvantage.”
Students will also notice that the test is shorter in the amount of time it takes. The time will be reduced by 30 minutes, also resulting in shorter questions. The test will be shorter by having several short passages in the reading module rather than a few long passages. As for the math module, there will be shorter word problem questions. The second math module will consist of easier/harder problems depending on how you performed on the first module.
The questions will no longer be graded on just whether the question was correct or incorrect. It will be graded by which questions are correct, so not all questions carry the same weight.
With the Bluebook software, you are able to preview the test, so you can familiarize yourself with the material and/or practice. Bluebook also includes a built in calculator.
As for why we’re transitioning to a digital PSAT, it is mostly a matter of convenience. “It’s just made sense for them to
finally always go digital, especially now in this day and age, we’re using it more,” said Chris Riddel, who is organizing everything for the PSAT.
In regards to how to prepare for the PSAT, the app which it is run on, Bluebook, provides both a preview of the test’s format and a practice test. The practice test includes a timer, built in calculator, and everything else to simulate what the real test would be like. These online practice versions that Bluebook provides may be easier than the former paper practice books.
