Having scratch paper while testing is extremely helpful. Please allow us to use it. Thanks
D
Dominic
5 years ago
Eliminating the scratch paper and going digital will have an impact on the timing and speed of thinking. If you eliminate the scratch paper than we should have more time
A
Anonymous
5 years ago
I understand the concerns with having scratch paper for online testing, but it shouldn't be taken away for in-person tests! It is a must for the tests!! There has to be an other solution for this!
S
Salvatore Caserta
5 years ago
NO WHITEBOARD!!!! Don’t take our scratch paper, it’s all we got left.
E
Eleanor Selzer
5 years ago
We need scratch paper! It is absurd to think that one could take tests like these without writing things down.
O
Olivia Adams
5 years ago
This is ridiculous
S
Shanna Fish
5 years ago
Scratch paper is absolutely necessary while taking the exam. Digital scratch paper just will not do. It doesn't have the same capability as pen/paper and it's not as fast for a timed test. Please come up with a different solution and leave the physical scratch paper option for test takers!
L
Lauren Garriott
5 years ago
Scratch paper saves lives!
B
brent legendre
5 years ago
NCARB has a monopoly on the access to our careers. There has to be more involvement from the community at large before you act in ways that harm everyone
M
Matt Torres
5 years ago
What is wrong with NCARB? Who asked for this? The disconnect between the people in charge of these exams and the people taking these exams is a joke. Architects think with pencils in hand - we literally explain our ideas sketching on paper. It's clear to me and everyone else that NCARB is lost when it comes to this.
We expect better.
Are there any architects/designers on staff? I can't imagine a single one of them OK'd this decision. If the goal of implementing a "whiteboard" is to reduce the number of architects in the world, then consider this a huge success. Shame on you NCARB.
R
Robert FERENCE
5 years ago
keep the scratch paper plain and simple!
M
Matthew Tracy
5 years ago
Wow, whats next NCARB a lottery wheel that decides which test your going to take when you sit down. Its clear the people making these rules have never taken any of these tests. If they did they would realize how difficult its going to be to use PAINT to work out equations.
A
Anonymous
5 years ago
NCARB is supposed to encourage licensure. Not obstruct it!
K
Kara
5 years ago
Please keep scratch paper in the testing centers! I understand the concerns with remote taking but this is critical to the success of candidates!
A
Anonymous
5 years ago
NCARB is supposed to encourage licensure. Not obstruct it!
M
Michelle Heckman
5 years ago
Scratch paper is absolutely essential for these exams. This is a visual field, filled with visual thinkers and as Luben Dimcheff, Prof of Practice at Cornell University, once said, "drawing is our language". Even if NCARB could ensure that the computer interface for scratch paper functioned without malfunctions, writing on a screen with a mouse is light years away from an adequate substitute for the simple and vital pen and paper. In addition to the calculations, there are several questions that require thought and processing, which is best done by writing and sketching notes on paper. In addition, the scratch paper is an important time saver since the resources take such a long time to load, I record page numbers of resources that I know I will likely need to come back to for other questions so that I don't have to wait for all the pages to load and scroll through each time. As the letter states, Prometric knows how to monitor scratch paper and we should let them do it. As for the home testing, perhaps we mail the candidate a sealed envelop that they open when the test begins with the scratch paper and pencil inside, and then give them an envelope to mail it back when they are done? Whatever needs to be done to keep the scratch paper, it is worth it. Please reconsider.
H
Haley Walton
5 years ago
Really disappointed in this decision. Aside from the obvious (architects are visual people who are taught the importance of using our hands on paper), many people rely on the mental grounding of a paper in pencil in an otherwise stressful environment. The digital exam format is already difficult enough for those with learning disabilities, and the software used to run the exam is so low quality that I don't trust the addition of yet another slow-running digital platform that crowds my screen. In this time of change for the ARE, NCARB needs to focus its efforts on the consistency of content of the exam... without sabotaging the delivery.
A
Arthur Calcaterra
5 years ago
Taking way paper and pencils, way to go. Let's just make it harder on everyone
J
Joseph Coradini
5 years ago
I am struggling to pass my last test, and this news adds more stress to an already overly stressful situation. I had the software shut down and restart the computer on my PDD exam, and before that the PDF loaded blurry so I couldn't read the information. I can't see how adding another program / element to the tests will make things run smoother.
A
Anonymous
5 years ago
the exam is already a challenge with drawings and labels not being legible. The zoom has never worked for plans and I have no faith a digital whiteboard will be executed to a level to match good old fashioned pencil/paper. this is totally not acceptable and beyond what is expected in real practice.
Having scratch paper while testing is extremely helpful. Please allow us to use it. Thanks
Eliminating the scratch paper and going digital will have an impact on the timing and speed of thinking. If you eliminate the scratch paper than we should have more time
I understand the concerns with having scratch paper for online testing, but it shouldn't be taken away for in-person tests! It is a must for the tests!! There has to be an other solution for this!
NO WHITEBOARD!!!! Don’t take our scratch paper, it’s all we got left.
We need scratch paper! It is absurd to think that one could take tests like these without writing things down.
This is ridiculous
Scratch paper is absolutely necessary while taking the exam. Digital scratch paper just will not do. It doesn't have the same capability as pen/paper and it's not as fast for a timed test. Please come up with a different solution and leave the physical scratch paper option for test takers!
Scratch paper saves lives!
NCARB has a monopoly on the access to our careers. There has to be more involvement from the community at large before you act in ways that harm everyone
What is wrong with NCARB? Who asked for this? The disconnect between the people in charge of these exams and the people taking these exams is a joke. Architects think with pencils in hand - we literally explain our ideas sketching on paper. It's clear to me and everyone else that NCARB is lost when it comes to this. We expect better. Are there any architects/designers on staff? I can't imagine a single one of them OK'd this decision. If the goal of implementing a "whiteboard" is to reduce the number of architects in the world, then consider this a huge success. Shame on you NCARB.
keep the scratch paper plain and simple!
Wow, whats next NCARB a lottery wheel that decides which test your going to take when you sit down. Its clear the people making these rules have never taken any of these tests. If they did they would realize how difficult its going to be to use PAINT to work out equations.
NCARB is supposed to encourage licensure. Not obstruct it!
Please keep scratch paper in the testing centers! I understand the concerns with remote taking but this is critical to the success of candidates!
NCARB is supposed to encourage licensure. Not obstruct it!
Scratch paper is absolutely essential for these exams. This is a visual field, filled with visual thinkers and as Luben Dimcheff, Prof of Practice at Cornell University, once said, "drawing is our language". Even if NCARB could ensure that the computer interface for scratch paper functioned without malfunctions, writing on a screen with a mouse is light years away from an adequate substitute for the simple and vital pen and paper. In addition to the calculations, there are several questions that require thought and processing, which is best done by writing and sketching notes on paper. In addition, the scratch paper is an important time saver since the resources take such a long time to load, I record page numbers of resources that I know I will likely need to come back to for other questions so that I don't have to wait for all the pages to load and scroll through each time. As the letter states, Prometric knows how to monitor scratch paper and we should let them do it. As for the home testing, perhaps we mail the candidate a sealed envelop that they open when the test begins with the scratch paper and pencil inside, and then give them an envelope to mail it back when they are done? Whatever needs to be done to keep the scratch paper, it is worth it. Please reconsider.
Really disappointed in this decision. Aside from the obvious (architects are visual people who are taught the importance of using our hands on paper), many people rely on the mental grounding of a paper in pencil in an otherwise stressful environment. The digital exam format is already difficult enough for those with learning disabilities, and the software used to run the exam is so low quality that I don't trust the addition of yet another slow-running digital platform that crowds my screen. In this time of change for the ARE, NCARB needs to focus its efforts on the consistency of content of the exam... without sabotaging the delivery.
Taking way paper and pencils, way to go. Let's just make it harder on everyone
I am struggling to pass my last test, and this news adds more stress to an already overly stressful situation. I had the software shut down and restart the computer on my PDD exam, and before that the PDF loaded blurry so I couldn't read the information. I can't see how adding another program / element to the tests will make things run smoother.
the exam is already a challenge with drawings and labels not being legible. The zoom has never worked for plans and I have no faith a digital whiteboard will be executed to a level to match good old fashioned pencil/paper. this is totally not acceptable and beyond what is expected in real practice.