The NFHS rules quizzes on their app has not been updated in quite some time. There are still questions from 2013 in that database. Fail. Delete the quizzes or update them.
Only 5 times? For some reason, here in New York, we have 99 chances to pass the online test! But I think that I take it too seriously for the number of chances that we get. My usual routine is to read the new edition of the rule book, take the online test by saving without submitting, go back to look up every question even the ones that I know I got correct, and then submitting the test. This year, I did that and still missed one!
I reported question 135 last year (emphasis added): I answered D and of course was marked wrong. About to take the new test. Fun times.
Got 24/25, since I didn't read carefully enough on one question (ball becomes defective in goal area). Interesting that here (IL) the test is 25 questions out of a bank of 75. And you can retake the test but it costs $15.
It's interesting to hear the differences between each state. Here in NC you need to get a 75 with no retakes. If you get less than 75, you can't do varsity games that season.
Minnesota test is out of 60. 80% to pass (max 12 wrong). The good: I only got one wrong. The bad: It was open book, which I took full advantage of, and I still got one wrong. The ugly: I took it last week and I remember nothing.
In Kentucky, we get two attempts at the Part II test. To be eligible for post-season, you must score at least 80 out of 100. The testing window is open for the first 2 weeks of the season.
I should note this is the Part 1 exam. I don't think I've ever had to take the Part 2 exam (maybe because I'm only working JHS games).
We require 75% in order to do any high school games and you get three tries, "open book, open friend," of course. We do offer the test in Spanish for those who feel more comfortable in that language. If you get less than 75%, you can only do middle school games. You have to get 90% to do playoff games. Playoff assignments also require that you have been a USSF grade 8 at some point in your career. 98% (no, not a wild guesstimate, it's the actual number) of our high school referees meet that requirement anyway.
You need to remember one thing if you want to have a "career" refereeing high school soccer; it is one of the last refuges of the "old boy" network between assignors and coaches. I have seen very good referees relegated to doing j.v. games because a coach badmouthed him to the assignor. In California, assigning is a BUSINESS and the assignors make money from it. And YES, I KNOW that this does not hold everywhere, but in the Bay Area, it does. So be politic around the coaches.
Treating coaches with respect should always be a part of your approach. But you paint with too broad a brush. The Bay Area has four different CIF sections, and two of them (CCS and NCS) are quite large. Your section, NCS, has 14 different accredited officials organizations! My section, CCS, has six. I know the assignors of the largest organizations in three of the four sections and I can say your allegations are utterly without merit.
I work for one association in CCS, but I know several referees who work for three or even four. Which association you align with most predominantly depends on where you live and work. Within CCS it would not be unusual to live in San Francisco and work in Silicon Valley, or vice-versa. These referees can referee close to work, close to home, or part-way in-between.
In tiny little CT, there are 6 ref associations for HS (I think). It appears that it might take an act of god to get to ref for 2 associations at once. We live on the edge of one area and my son was taking college classes in another area and we thought it would be efficient to try to do both. No way - had to leave one (with permission) and join the other. And I know a GREAT ref who also lives in a border town and wants to work in both. He is in a battle because assignor says no, but state bylaws apparently say yes. So he might ultimately "win", but............
New York is divided into eleven sections based on geography. Within each section, there are one or more boards further subdivided based on geography. For example, there are three soccer boards in Section III (Utica, Syracuse Watertown), but Section II only has one. You can join as many boards as you want as long as you are willing to pay membership dues and be available. Although geographically, I live in Section III and am a member of the Utica Board, I could easily join the Section II (Albany) or Section IV (Southern Tier) boards because of where I work. One of my friends works for both Section II and Section III.
It's just a power struggle. He will ultimately lose, there is nothing, NOTHING, that should prevent this in CT. 1) What's the difference if they work for another board in another state (we have several that do). 2) What's the difference if they are officiating college soccer (numerous officials) 3) What's the difference if the officiate multiple sports (numerous officials). It's all the same. The assignor will figure out if they are cherry picking and assignments will reflect that.
Also Ran, I could really give a rat's ass what you think. But this is America and at least for the time being you are welcome to say what you like. I have personally watched 75 yr. old men A.R.'ing varsity boys playoff games and referees with about 2 yrs experience doing boys NCS semis. Or was that finals? Doesn't matter. it seems that you have missed the gist of my comment. But that doesn't matter either. Enjoy the kool aid!
I started this whole thing back in February, and while I DID run a CR for a girls' VAR, it was an end-of-season non-conference match between one great team and one really bad team, so it was really uneventful and actually fairly fun to do. Last night I had my first whistle for a boys' VAR match in a tourney and GOOD NIGHT, what a difference! First half was really really easy, nothing major, barely used my whistle, lots of soccer being played. Second half was largely the same until about the 60th minute when, drawn 0-0 both teams started getting frustrated with each other. Naturally, the team that really probably SHOULD have won gave up a PK in the 69th and they never recovered and lost 1-0. Yay for me! One of my ARs has been doing games for 30/40 years or so said I had a really really good match and said I should be proud of it. I have a lot of you peeps to thank for that. My toolbox/knowledge base/approach is molded in large part by what I've learned here. Thank you!
Thanks for sharing--it's always great to hear that the discussions hear helped someone getting started. When he ARs, a colleague of mine likes to say to the R at halftime. "Good half. But you know, anyone can referee the first half." Of course, what we do in the first half can make the second half easier or harder--as can things beyond our control. One caveat about going down the road of thinking certain games are going to be easier--it is often those "easy" games that have a way of sneaking up on us and biting us. Any time you have a game that you expect to be easy, it is also important not to over relax, but to be vigilant for signs of the tide turning.
I learned this one the hard way. I was scheduled to do VB centers at the same school twice in one week. After the first match turned out to be a testy affair, I suggested to the assignor that he switch me to the VG center on the second game date. Little did I know that there had been some ugly things said on social media about one of the home players by several of the girls on the visiting team. The "easier" girls game turned into the second nastiest VG I've ever worked. The boys game was a breeze, of course.
I agree that polite and respectful is the only way to deal with coaches. However, I think Mudhen is correct that the "good old boy" network is alive and well at least in a few of the NCS associations in the Bay Area. In my experience the network is expanded to include other referees. Quite a few association assignors have their referees who they lean on to do a majority of their tough games and or provide feedback about other referees. Like any other business it takes a while to get noticed and move up and along the way you will work with a few referees who you feel should not be doing x level of game but I try to look at those games as learning experiences and if it is really that bad you can always block an official or decline the game depending on what platform you are using. The nice thing about our area is, that if you are not getting the games you think you should be doing, there is always another association. Honestly, if you can't get the games you want from multiple associations I would think that an honest evaluation of your game might be needed. As far as NCS games. I feel that assignments up to the semi's tend to be based on the amount of help you provided to the association and that includes the CR position. Of course the assignors will only put you on games they know you can handle but it does make for some interesting crews.
Oh, I definitely had a constant inner monologue going : Ok, stay sharp, don't fall asleep here, let's move this way, keep an eye on that, be sharp, you're not communicating enough, be more verbal, good eye contact there with AR, ok, they want a sub, which way is blue going again? you're doing well, stay on top on everything, see a foul, call it. Things like that, and I learned to do it here. At half time I told my crew to stay sharp because it's going to take a turn at some point. I try really hard not to go into any games with an "This will be easy" attitude,t hat's when I make mistakes and I'm almost always wrong.