![“[Building nerf blasters] became this outlet of creativity for me that hasn't been matched by anything else. The process [of] making a build complete to your desire is such a painstakingly difficult process, but I've had to learn from [the skills needed from] soldering to proper painting. There's so many different options for everything, if you think about it, it exists. The best part is [that] if it doesn't exist, you can build it yourself," Ishaan Parate said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/DSC_8149-900x604.jpg)
![“When I came into high school, I was ready to be a follower. But DECA was a game changer for me. It helped me overcome my fear of public speaking, and it's played such a major role in who I've become today. To be able to successfully lead a chapter of 150 students, an officer team and be one of the upperclassmen I once really admired is something I'm [really] proud of,” Anvitha Tummala ('21) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Screen-Shot-2021-07-25-at-9.50.05-AM-900x594.png)
![“I think getting up in the morning and having a sense of purpose [is exciting]. I think without a certain amount of drive, life is kind of obsolete and mundane, and I think having that every single day is what makes each day unique and kind of makes life exciting,” Neymika Jain (12) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Screen-Shot-2017-06-03-at-4.54.16-PM.png)
![“My slogan is ‘slow feet, don’t eat, and I’m hungry.’ You need to run fast to get where you are–you aren't going to get those championships if you aren't fast,” Angel Cervantes (12) said. “I want to do well in school on my tests and in track and win championships for my team. I live by that, [and] I can do that anywhere: in the classroom or on the field.”](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/DSC5146-900x601.jpg)
![“[Volleyball has] taught me how to fall correctly, and another thing it taught is that you don’t have to be the best at something to be good at it. If you just hit the ball in a smart way, then it still scores points and you’re good at it. You could be a background player and still make a much bigger impact on the team than you would think,” Anya Gert (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AnnaGert_JinTuan_HoHPhotoEdited-600x900.jpeg)
![“I'm not nearly there yet, but [my confidence has] definitely been getting better since I was pretty shy and timid coming into Harker my freshman year. I know that there's a lot of people that are really confident in what they do, and I really admire them. Everyone's so driven and that has really pushed me to kind of try to find my own place in high school and be more confident,” Alyssa Huang (’20) said.](https://harkeraquila.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/AlyssaHuang_EmilyChen_HoHPhoto-900x749.jpeg)
College Board implements PSAT changes this year
51 Harker students were 2015-2016 National Merit Semifinalists. Sophomores and juniors took the new PSAT on Oct. 14.
Sophomores and juniors took a redesigned version of the Preliminary SAT (PSAT) last Wednesday.
Changes for the test included an increase in length, the combination of the reading and writing sections, more questions, a new scoring system and subscore reporting. The new test has an increased time of two hours and 45 minutes, with more questions in every section except for reading comprehension. The new scoring system is on a 320-1520 scale rather than the old 60-240 scale.
Some juniors did not appreciate the change, as they did not receive the chance to practice taking the new test last year.
“Why didn’t they just correspond the new PSAT with the new SAT at the same time?” Chris Hailey (11) said. “If they could have done that, then I wouldn’t have to study for both of them, as it puts so much more burden on me.”
The seniors were the last class to take the old version of the PSAT. Senior Joshua Hung voiced his opinion on the new elements.
“Last year, the PSAT was sort of like a precursor for the SAT so I could do well on it; the PSAT was similar to that, and that made it a little bit easier,” Joshua said. “I feel like this year, the PSAT will be a little bit more difficult with the longer test and more questions, but at the same time I think that people will get used to it and it might also be easier for some people given that there is no guessing penalty.”
The College Board will release scores for the PSAT in mid-December. Semifinalists for the National Merit Scholarship will be released next September.
This piece was originally published in the pages of The Winged Post on October 16, 2015.
Justin Su (11) is the Aquila sports columnist. He has been a part of the journalism program since his freshman year. He hopes to bring his passion for...