This morning, I did something I honestly never thought I would do again. I took the ASVAB. Yes, that ASVAB. And I did it right alongside about ten of our high school students.
The last time I sat for this test was 30 years ago as a 17-year-old at Stow High School. Three decades. Long enough that some of the questions felt familiar, some felt brand new, and a few made me think, “Wow, I really hope no one is watching me stare at this screen right now.”
I wanted to take the test for the same reason I encourage students to take it. To experience it, to understand it, and to give it my best. If I am going to talk with students about opportunities, pathways, and possibilities, I think it matters that I walk the walk too.
For a little context, the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery was introduced in 1968 as a comprehensive, standardized assessment used by the U.S. military to assess and classify recruits.
It became the unified enlistment exam in 1976 and has since doubled as a powerful career exploration tool for high school students. It is not just about military service, it is about helping students understand their strengths, skills, and interests.
The version I took today was the computer adaptive test, which is both impressive and mildly intimidating. The better you do, the harder the questions get. Miss one, and the test adjusts. It is like a very polite but relentless personal trainer for your brain.
I felt great about the verbal sections, general science, and the shop and mechanical comprehension parts. Word association? Bring it on.
When the test asked whether “ominous” was related to “sinister,” I barely had time to blink before clicking my answer. Mechanical concepts and practical reasoning still felt comfortable, too.
Algebra, however, and I are still in a complicated relationship.
I struggled there, just like I did 30 years ago. Some of those equations probably remain unbalanced to this day. Geometry, on the other hand, is still my jam. Ask me about square footage for an office addition or how to split the lunch bill, and I am your guy. Triangles? All day long.
One thing that really stood out to me was how some questions touch on content that may not appear in today’s K-12 curriculum, depending on a student’s program or pathway.
I was shown an electrical schematic and asked to identify components. Capacitor? Resistor? Transistor? I stared at it as if it were modern art.
That said, identifying the device that converts sound waves into electrical current as a microphone felt like a small personal victory.
The entire test took me about an hour and 25 minutes, and I genuinely gave it my best effort. No shortcuts, no excuses, just trying to work through each question the same way our students do.
More than anything, the experience reminded me how valuable it is to step into our students’ shoes. Testing can be stressful. Questions can feel unfamiliar. Confidence can rise and fall by the minute.
And yet, there is something empowering about showing up, engaging fully, and seeing what you can do.
Thirty years later, I am still learning, still growing, and apparently still wrestling with algebra. And honestly, I would not have it any other way.
Onward!