HOW IS PASSING A SKATING TEST DETERMINED?

[FSWer]

Ok, I was wondering about this...how DO Judges determine if you pass your Skating Test...AND is it different in all Disciplines? Do you have to be %100 perfect? OR do they do as if you were to be in School (In which case,you can pass even with a B) In which case,you made some mistakes)? Can you make a curtain amount of mistakes and STILL pass?....I was wondering about that...because as we all know...the only one perfect is....God. Does anyone know the answer?

 

[gkelly]

For each test, there are expectations about how good the skater needs to be. The overall quality does not need to be perfect, but at higher levels it should be getting pretty close. At beginning levels, it doesn't even to be very good, but the skater needs to show that they understand the moves and can do them without a lot of mistakes.

The judges use their judgment to decide if the skater has reached the level of quality that they expect for that level of test, or whether they're better than they need to be so they can afford a mistake, or not quite good enough yet.

In the US, tests can pass if there are some very small mistakes, as long as the rest of the skating is good.

If there are one or two medium or big mistakes but the rest of the skating is good, for some kinds of tests the judges might ask the skater to "reskate" that part of the test to see if they can do it without the mistake.

For some kinds of test if there is one big mistake judges can decide to pass the test anyway IF the skating in the rest of the test is really good.

If the skater is just almost sort of good enough for that test, then they can't afford to make any mistakes.

 

[TheGirlCanSkate]

Here is a link to US Figure Skating as well as their FAQ http://www.usfsa.org/clubs?id=84107 Basically you are judged by people who are trained to recognize meeting a standard for every part of the skate. If they are good enough with a minor mistake, they may be asked to show the move or jump again. If they do it well the second time they may pass the test. But if they are weak in more than one judged criteria, then they may be asked to retest at a later date. Coaches tend to not put a skater through a test unless they feel strongly that the skater will pass.They don't want the skater to become discouraged or to waste the time of the test chair and judges. If you look over the link you can get an idea of the testing process. Here is the test rule book: http://www.usfsa.org/content/2017-18 Rulebook.pdf

 

[FSWer]

Here is a link to US Figure Skating as well as their FAQ http://www.usfsa.org/clubs?id=84107 Basically you are judged by people who are trained to recognize meeting a standard for every part of the skate. If they are good enough with a minor mistake, they may be asked to show the move or jump again. If they do it well the second time they may pass the test. But if they are weak in more than one judged criteria, then they may be asked to retest at a later date. Coaches tend to not put a skater through a test unless they feel strongly that the skater will pass.They don't want the skater to become discouraged or to waste the time of the test chair and judges. If you look over the link you can get an idea of the testing process. Here is the test rule book: http://www.usfsa.org/content/2017-18 Rulebook.pdf

I just saw info. on the Rulebook.

 

[Sylvia]

@FSWer, here's a video of an adult passing her solo dance tests (Dutch Waltz and Canasta Tango): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNQM3sPN1Uc

Dutch Waltz test judging form: http://www.usfsa.org/content/JP_DN-Dutch Waltz.pdf

 

[FSWer]

COOOOOOOOOL!!!!!!! Were was that taken,and who is that?

 

[Sylvia]

An adult singles skater & ice dancer named Paula who captioned the video "Please enjoy my Solo Dutch Waltz and Solo Canasta Tango Pattern Ice Dance Tests. I passed both pattern ice dance tests on Saturday, 7/29/2017."

She doesn't say where she passed her tests but it looks like she skates in the San Francisco area.

 

[FSWer]

An adult singles skater & ice dancer named Paula who captioned the video "Please enjoy my Solo Dutch Waltz and Solo Canasta Tango Pattern Ice Dance Tests. I passed both pattern ice dance tests on Saturday, 7/29/2017."

She doesn't say where she passed her tests but it looks like she skates in the San Francisco area.

Yours?....Do you have a video?

 

[Sylvia]

No, I don't have any videos on YouTube of me skating.

 

[FSWer]

Oh,because you asked if I would enjoy your Dutch-Waltz. BTW. how do you know her name is Paula?

 

[Sylvia]

If you click on the link I provided, the YouTube channel is called "Paula's Figure Skating." I just copied what she wrote in her video caption.

I don't know her personally; I just thought you might enjoy watching an adult's successful solo ice dance test of the first 2 beginner dances.

 

[FSWer]

Which link? I just have the link to the video.

 

[Sylvia]

This is the link I posted: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNQM3sPN1Uc

 

[FSWer]

Saw it....Say,when and if I ever do test as a first-time Ice-Dancer with a Partner...how would they treat a Novice (in my case somebody who has never been an Ice-Dancer before...VS. Novice meaning level)? Oh...and btw....Judges could never go against me because I have disabilities...right?

 

[TheGirlCanSkate]

Every skater starts with the first test, so you would be judged as someone newer to skating. When your coach tells you that you are ready to test, they might contact us figure skating to see if they can accommodate disabilities in the test. There may be alternate tests, esp at the beginner level. I just don't know any details or where they are offered. It is not something I'd worry about now. My daughter skated 4 years before her first us figure skating tests.

 

[gkelly]

Saw it....Say,when and if I ever do test as a first-time Ice-Dancer with a Partner...how would they treat a Novice (in my case somebody who has never been an Ice-Dancer before...

The first dance tests that you would take would be the Preliminary pattern dances.

Everyone who takes the Preliminary tests is new to ice dancing.

Some skaters take those tests when they're already better skaters from doing other kinds of skating before they start ice dancing. But most adults who take the Preliminary dance tests are just as new to skating as you will be by the time you're ready for those tests.

For someone who can't get to practice and take lessons very often, it can take a few years before they're ready to take the Preliminary tests. Someone who skates several times a week might get ready sooner.

Judges could never go against me because I have disabilities...right?

If you register with Special Olympics you can take a Special Olympics version of the dance tests. The judges would just give you a Pass or Retry score instead of numbers. (The Preliminary tests are Pass or Retry for everyone, but at the other levels judges give the testers number scores. For Special Olympics tests they do not.)

The judges will also take the disabilities into account and be a little easier on what they expect in a Special Olympics version of the test. They will still expect you to do the right steps at the right time. But you wouldn't have to do them perfectly.

 

[overedge]

@FSWer you don't have to have a partner to take ice dance tests. Almost everyone taking the Preliminary dance tests is partnered by their coach for the test.

One other thing the judges are looking for, even in Preliminary tests, is that the person taking the test has good enough skating skills to do the dance on their own. The partner should not be holding the skater up, or pushing or pulling the skater through the steps. This is why it is important to practice skating skills on your own, and to become a good skater yourself before working with a partner.

 

[Clarice]

At this time, I don't think there are any official USFS Special Olympics tests specifically for ice dance. There are Special Olympics learn-to-skate badge tests, Moves in the Field tests, and Free Skating tests. But I don't see anything in the rule book for ice dance.

Of course, once FSWer has learned the skating skills he needs to do a dance, there is nothing stopping him from taking the same test anybody would take. There are no rules that say a person with a disability can't take them. And who knows, maybe they would add Special Olympics dance tests if skaters asked for them.

 

[gkelly]

According to the 2017-18 USFS rulebook:

"TR 11.00 Special Olympics/Therapeutic Skating Test Rules
TR 11.01
A Special Olympics/Therapeutic Skating test may be given to any Special Olympics or therapeutic skating athlete who is registered with a Special Olympics or therapeutic skating program. Tests are to be judged on a “pass” or “retry” basis.

A. Moves in the field tests ...

B. Free skate tests ...

C. Pattern dance tests may be given at all levels specified in rule TR 40.01. Partners may be selected without regard to their dance test accomplishments. No solos are required."


For Moves in the Field and Free Skate tests, there are separate tests with somewhat different requirements than the standard or adult tests.

For Pattern dances, the patterns are exactly the same as for the standard or adult/masters tests. The only differences, from what I see here, are that all levels of Special Olympics/Therepeutic pattern dance tests are pass/retry, and no levels require solos. Only the higher levels require solos anyway, and not for adult and masters skater, so that's not much of a difference.

I do think that if a skater registers for a pattern dance test as a Special Olympics skater, the judges will be a little more lenient than they would for a standard or adult or masters skater of the same age range taking the same test.

But the only official difference is that from Pre-Bronze on up, the scoring will remain as Pass/Retry.

 

[Clarice]

Oh, that's great! Thanks for finding that, gkelly! I was looking in the schedule of tests in that section of the rule book, where the moves and free skate tests are listed, and didn't see similar listings for dance. I didn't think to look in the first part of the rule book.

 

[gkelly]

I used the search function

 

[FSWer]

Say,this question can to me. When Skater's get their test results,do they face the Judges? Or do they do like at the "Nutmeg Games" and wait for them to be posted?

 

[Clarice]

Each judge writes on a test sheet. They write their scores, comments, and whether or not the test passes. The sheets are given to the test chair, who checks to make sure the judge added up the scores correctly. The test chair then makes copies of the test sheets - one for the skater, and one for the coach. The test sheets are then given to the coach, who tells the skater what the results are. Test results are not posted or announced anywhere. Only the skater and the coach are told, and it is up to them if they want to share the results with anybody. The test chair reports the results to US Figure Skating, and they put them on the skater's permanent record.

 

[purple skates]

When I’ve tested, my coach gets the results and brings them to me.