The higher the stakes for any given exam, the more likely it is that some test takers will seek an unfair or unethical advantage, as anyone connected to the American Mathematics Competitions has recently observed. Amy and Mike invited educator Vida John to explain why math’s “SAT moment” has arrived along with a shift to high-security testing.
What are five things you will learn in this episode?
- What is the AMC, and what role does it play in college admissions?
- How does the Mathematical Association of America (MAA) address score integrity?
- What are the pros and cons of testing at private centers like Pearson?
- What are the implications for other contests related to science and humanities?
- Could we expect something similar happening to the SAT, AP, and ACT?
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MEET OUR GUEST
Vida John is a math coach and tutor who specializes in students preparing for math contests and studying curriculum published by Art of Problem Solving. Vida grew up in Iowa, where she was a high school mathlete before studying at the Stanford School of Engineering and UCSF School of Medicine. After working in Silicon Valley for a medical start-up, she homeschooled her two daughters to provide an excellent education, especially in math and science.
She coached homeschooled math teams for 10 years, and with both daughters now attending Stanford, she continues to help students prepare for MathCounts, AMC, and other contests while building their problem-solving skills. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area and runs workshops on using math contests to prepare for college-level work.
Vida previously appeared on this podcast in episode 255 to discuss Competitive Math And Testing, in episode 536 to discuss All About the American Math Competition, and in episode 628 to discuss Admissions Implications of Academic Competitions.
Find Vida at vidajohntutoring.com.
LINKS
American Mathematics Competitions
MATHCOUNTS Foundation
Art of Problem Solving
RELATED EPISODES
MATHEMATICAL MATURITY & TEST SUCCESS
HIGH IMPACT STRATEGIES TO HELP STUDENTS SUCCEED IN MATH
CHOOSING HIGH SCHOOL MATH COURSES STRATEGICALLY
ABOUT THIS PODCAST
Tests and the Rest is THE college admissions industry podcast. Explore all of our past episodes on the show page and keep up with our future ones by subscribing to our email newsletter.
ABOUT YOUR HOSTS
Mike Bergin is the president of Chariot Learning and founder of TestBright, Roots2Words, and College Eagle. Amy Seeley is the president of Seeley Test Pros and LEAP. Get in touch with Mike and/or Amy for test preparation, training, consulting, or anything podcast related through our contact page. We’d love to hear from you!