March 15, 44 B.C. is a date that every Latin student at Old Rochester Regional High School knows. Referred to by scholars and historians as the Ides of March (Roman calendars counted days backwards from the fixed Kalends, Nones, and Ides during each month), this date marks the assassination of Julius Caesar, the infamous Roman dictator. Every year, the Ides of March also marks the test date for the National Latin Exam.
ORR has always offered this unique test-taking experience to its Latin students. While the exam’s name implies that Latin students from the entire country try their best to answer questions about vocabulary, grammar, and culture, it is in fact an understatement of the exam’s popularity and scope. In fact, Latin students from all over the world take the National Latin Exam annually.
The National Latin Exam, which ORR students took in the high school’s library during first block this Wednesday, offers five levels of examinations. These range from Introduction to Latin to Latin V/VI. Students from the Old Rochester Regional Junior High School also take the National Latin Exam; they take Latin I. The track that students from the Old Rochester Regional School District normally take is Latin I, Latin II, Latin III/IV Prose, and Latin III/IV Poetry.
Each test consists of 40 questions. The first portion of the test focuses on grammar. Typically, these questions ask for the proper translation of a noun, pronoun, verb, adverb, and sometimes conjunction. The second portion of the test focuses on vocabulary and derivatives in the English language. The third portion of test, which typically ends after question 25, focuses on the culture of the Romans, as well as their government, history, and geography. In order to do well on the National Latin Exam, students must have a working knowledge of both the language and its speakers. The remaining ten or 15 questions involve a translation, which students must read, understand, and interpret. Usually the translation is prose, although students taking the Latin III/IV and Latin V/VI exam may elect to take an exam with poetry.
Usually, the ORR School District pays for the exams. However, this year the budget is tight and while the school has continued to pay for the registration fees and shipping cost of the exams, the students must pay the $4 cost of their individual exams. Since students are now partly paying for their exams, they have been given the choice of whether to take the exam or not. Across the board, the number of ORR students taking the National Latin Exam has declined. Students were actually able to take the exam in the library instead of the cafeteria. But the situation is not completely dire; as ORR Latin teacher Judith Prétat noted, she has a group of students taking the Latin III/IV Poetry exam this year, which is the first time since 2005.
By taking the National Latin Exam, students open to themselves scholarship and award opportunities. Every year, the administration behind the National Latin Exam analyzes the test scores for the purpose of awarding medals and certificates to strong Latin students. Students can receive Summa cum laude (gold medal), Maxima cum laude (silver medal), Magna cum laude (certificate), and cum laude (certificate.) Students who achieve Perfect Papers receive a hand-lettered certificate. Students who receive multiple Perfect Papers and/or multiple Summa cum laude awards are eligible for different scholarships — many of these require recipients to study Latin or Greek during their first year of college.
In other news, ORR senior Max Sherman was congratulated for his selection to the Massachusetts State Hockey Coaches Association High School All-Star Classic. The game, which is hosted by the Worcester Sharks of the American Hockey League, will take place on Sunday, April 1 at the DCU Center in Worcester at 12:00 pm. Sherman is one of 46 Massachusetts high school hockey players who was selected to participate in this game. He will be skating for the South All-Star team. ORR asks that you help Sherman into the starting lineup by texting SHERMAN to 74499.
By Anne Smith