Practise the thinking. Keep the judgement.
ACER scholarship examination: how to prepare
Prepare for an ACER scholarship examination by naming your level, practising each section, and writing from the stimulus you are given.
How do you start ACER scholarship examination preparation?
Read the school’s letter, write down the level and the sections, then attempt one short task from each section before you look at an explanation.
Primary entry into Years 4 to 6 uses Reading and Viewing, Mathematics and Writing. Secondary entry into Years 7 to 12 uses Written Expression, Humanities and Mathematics at Level 1, 2 or 3. The examination day and the delivery, on paper or online, come from the school’s registration with ACER.
People also search for “ACER scholarship exam” and “ACER scholarship examination”. Those names point to this sitting. Keep HAST and EduTest separate when the letter uses those names.
How do you practise the mathematics?
Write the quantities and the question before you calculate. Then change one number and solve the new version without looking.
Original example: 36 students enter a session and three-quarters stay for writing. The group you start with is 36, so 36 × 3/4 = 27 stay. If you instead take three-quarters of the students who leave, you answer a different question. Name the group before you use the fraction. ACER’s example material says calculators are not used, so practise the arithmetic by hand.
For Levels 2 and 3, ACER’s 2017 mathematics notes include scientific reasoning: interpret the information, identify a relationship, and judge whether a conclusion follows. After a science-style item, write the evidence in the stimulus and the extra assumption an appealing choice added.
How do you practise written expression?
Use the stimulus as the basis of the piece. Plan one situation or argument, write it, and then read it for content, order and sentences.
ACER’s writing notes assess thought and content, structure and organisation, and expression, style and mechanics. Two tasks may ask for different kinds of writing, such as a story, a description or a point of view. The notes say a piece that is not developed from the stimulus is penalised. If you finish early, change a sentence that does not earn its place.
ACER’s primary notes allow 40 minutes for two writing tasks. An example booklet describes 25 minutes for a writing task. Use the time printed on your examination instructions.
What do you check before the examination?
Check the level, the sections, whether it is on paper or online, and what you may bring. Register for each school separately.
A parent registers and pays for each school. Sitting one school’s examination does not register you at another. On the day, answer from the material in front of you. Afterward, read the report section by section and practise the section you could not explain.
RubricMark’s maths practice helps with the quantitative questions. EduTest and HAST practice are for those named tests. Use the ACER scholarship test guide to match the sections to your level.