A Week of Tests

I hate tests, always have and always will. Because of tests, I have a strong hate for school. I enjoy learning but can't sit still in a classroom setting and if it's something I am not interested in, I'm doomed. It took me 7 years to get my bachelors degree which was a really big accomplishment for me. I always used to joke that I have enough credits to have my PhD by now. As I said in an earlier entry, I have decided to get a teaching degree in Special Ed, which means I need to apply (and be accepted) to grad school. I have looked into many local schools and have applied to National Louis University. I only have the minimum GPA needed from my under-grad so a lot could be riding on my test scores I may need but as I said above, I hate tests and don't do well on them. So when I heard that I needed to take 2 tests in order to be accepted made my heart race. There wasn't much prep work that could be done before the tests (unlike the GRE which I have also studied for, taken and pretty much bombed) but I did review the study guides and take some of the practice tests questions. I took the first test, The Miller Analogies Test, last Monday night and it was horrible. It was 120 questions, all analogies. I am terrible at analogies, in fact, my mind rejects them. I struggled with them back in high school so my parents got me a tutor (sylvan learning center) but I still did terrible on the ACT's. Needless to say, Monday night was a really bad night for me. I felt so dumb! I worried all week about the next test, The Basic Skills Test, that I had to take which was on Saturday at 7:15 am. The experience of just getting into the classroom to take this class could be an entire post in itself. It was unreal how many people were there to take that test...maybe 400 people? It took me 4 hours and 17 minutes to complete this test. The first part on reading comprehension was awful, I cannot remember anything I read, so that took me a long time. The language arts was fine, I was amazed at how much math I remembered and the essay part was a joke. As much as I love writing, it was at the end of the test and my brain was fried. I am praying that I did okay on both of these tests to at least be accepted. I also have to write a written statement about why I want to be a special ed teacher, which I don't think will be a problem. I've invested a lot of time and hundreds of dollars into the tests, fees, transcript requests and everything else they require, I am really hoping it all pays off and I get my letter of acceptance. I am confident that I will excel in my classes and be a great teacher so my fingers are crossed! I'll keep you all posted. :)