College prep in eighth grade? Not so says the College Board, even though they are forging a new test for eighth graders which they claim is purely for “diagnostic purposes.” The test is called “ReadiStep” (misspelling in a standardized test title is…adorable?), is two hours long and divided into three multiple choice sections: critical reading, writing and math.

The College Board claims it is “low-stakes” as in, if you do bad it won’t mess up your entire future like say, the SAT. And because of its supposed non-importance, the results are only being shared with teachers, parents, students and schools. Um, doesn’t that just about cover everyone? And try telling a 13 year-old kid that a test is “low-stakes.” Do you really think he’ll put more than two seconds of thought into it? That being said, on the other hand, breathing down an eighth grader’s neck to do well on the “ReadiStep” is probably not the best thing for child development either.

To sum up the oppositition to College Board’s new endeavor, former principal John D’Auria weighs in:

“It’s all about sorting and finding out who the talented are rather than trying to build into young kids the lifelong journey of learning.”

Lastly, one other new item via the College Board. They’ve now put the SAT scores online for October and November. Go to this website and login to find out how the rest of your life is going to turn out.