LEAPing forward: Students to start testing next week

St. Tammany News

The Louisiana Educational Assessment Program (LEAP) test will be given to St. Tammany Parish public school students in the fourth and eighth grades Monday through Wednesday.

Any student wishing to enroll in St. Tammany Parish public schools in the fifth or ninth grade for the 2008-2009 school year must have passed the fourth/eighth grade LEAP test.

School Board spokesperson Linda Roan said a student must score at the Basic level or either the English Language Arts or Mathematics component and score at least the Approaching Basic achievement level on the other component.

Therefore, a student scoring Approaching Basic on both math and language arts would not be promoted to fifth or ninth grade. This is known as the Basic/Approaching Basic combination.

To aid students in preparing for the test, the Louisiana Department of Education has set up a helpline. The toll free number is 1-877-453-2721. In addition to the helpline's regular hours of 3-7 p.m. Monday through Friday, the helpline will offer assistance on Sunday from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

The DOE Web site also has a number of test taking tips for parents and children, including the fact that children do not need to answer every question correctly in order to pass the test.

In fact, it is not expected that students will answer every question correctly.

Since there is no penalty for guessing, all questions should be answered, even if it is a best guess.

Students are reminded they should listen to directions carefully and use their time wisely. If they don't know the answer, skip it and go back to it later.

Parents also can play a part in preparation for the test. Parents should make sure their students get a god night's sleep the night before, eat a good breakfast, have a stress-free morning the day of the test and get to school on time.