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{{New SAT test disclaimer}} | |||
'''SAT Exam Prep''' | '''SAT Exam Prep''' | ||
* Index of SAT Prep pages:[[:category:SAT exam prep]] | |||
* Index of SAT Verbal prep pages: [[:category:SAT verbal]] | |||
* Links to Verbal section pages: | |||
** [[SAT Reading section techniques, strategies & approaches]] | |||
** [[SAT Reading section historical timeline & themes]] | |||
** [[SAT Writing section techniques, strategies & approaches]] | |||
** [[SAT Verbal sections terms & vocabulary|SAT Verbal section vocabulary]] | |||
*** contains useful words to know for textual comprehension, questions, and possible answers | |||
[[category:SAT exam prep]] | |||
[[category:SAT verbal]] | |||
[[category:SAT Reading]] | |||
[[category:SAT Writing]] | |||
[[category:SAT Math]] | |||
== SAT exam overview == | |||
* The SAT exam is owned by the College Board (CB) | |||
** we will use "CB" here, although the College Board does not refer to itself by the abbreviation) | |||
* SAT | |||
** it is no longer an abbreviation (i.e., "S.A.T.") | |||
*** it originally stood for "Scholastic Assessment Test" | |||
*** in 1993 the CB re-branded the test to "SAT" unto itself and not as an abbreviation (i.e., dropping "Scholastic Assessment Test") | |||
*** since the word "aptitude" means "innate ability", College Board was accused of racism, given different SAT score averages by race | |||
* SAT tests are developed and administered by Educational Testing Service (ETS) under contract from CB | |||
** SAT accounts for 25% of ETS's functions | |||
** ETS creates also develops and administers TOEFL ("Test of English as a Foreign Language"), GRE (graduate school admissions), and Praxis (for teachers) | |||
* note that CB and ETS are non-profits but both engage in aggressive business practices | |||
== SAT & standardized college aptitude tests history == | |||
* achievement or admissions tests were used by 1870 | |||
* "College Entrance Examination Board," was formed in in 1899 by various colleges/ universities | |||
* First "Scholastic Aptitude Test" exam administered in 1926 | |||
* the purpose of the SAT was to create a merit-based college admissions metric independent of student grades, school, and demographic | |||
* originally called the "Scholastic Aptitude Test" | |||
* subject tests were added in 1937 called "Scholarship Test" | |||
* in 1993, the names for the tests were changed: | |||
** "Scholastic Aptitude Test" now the "SAT I: Reasoning Test" | |||
** "Scholarship Test" now the "SAT II: Subject Test" | |||
** the entire suite of tests was not called "Scholastic Assessment Tests" | |||
** the "SAT" was declared to stand for nothing (not an abbreviation) | |||
* "SAT I" was dropped in 2004 | |||
* the "Reasoning Test" was dropped in 2016 | |||
* SAT digital test will launch | |||
** International SAT: Spring 2023 | |||
** U.S. PSAT: Fall 2023 | |||
** U.S. SAT: Spring 2024 | |||
** see https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/digital/s | |||
* sources: | |||
**https://www.erikthered.com/tutor/sat-act-history.html | |||
** [https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1993/03/27/sat-changes-name-but-it-wont-score-1600-with-critics/c8bf8809-2c0f-4582-9911-9e5f74ed4c6d/ SAT Changes Name But It Won't Score 1600 With Critics (Washington Post)] | |||
== SAT exam format changes == | |||
=== 2016 format changes === | |||
* in 2014, College Board announced fundamental changes in the SAT test | |||
** CB claimed it was because the test had "become disconnected from the work of our high schools.” | |||
** it was also in response rising popularity of the ACT test CB changed core test format | |||
*** ACT = "American College Testing" (title since dropped, refers to itself solely as "ACT") | |||
*** in 2012, more students took the ACT than the SAT for the first time (see [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ACT_(test)ACT test (wiki)]] | |||
*** the SAT test was changed to follow a similar format as the ACT | |||
**** source [https://web.archive.org/web/20140514233331/http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/06/education/major-changes-in-sat-announced-by-college-board.html?_r=1 A New SAT Aims to Realign With Schoolwork(NY Times)]] | |||
* starting 2016, the SAT changes included: | |||
** total score returned to 1600 | |||
** 4 instead of 5 possible answers | |||
** dropped the 1/4-point penalty for wrong answers | |||
*** the penalty was designed to encourage skipping and penalize random guessing | |||
** math narrowed to focus on linear equations, equations or functions, rations, percentages and proportional reasoning | |||
** "critical reading" section changed to "evidence-based" (passage-based) reading excerpts (like the ACT) | |||
** grammar section changed to "evidence-based" (passage-based) reading excerpts (like the ACT) | |||
** verbal section vocabulary changed to evidence-based selection and use of more common words | |||
** essay now optional (thus the total score of 1600 instead of the previous 2400) | |||
** CB partnered with Khan Academy in order to offer free preparation instruction and practice | |||
=== 2021 change: essay & subject tests dropped === | |||
* the College Board dropped the essay (after the June, 2021 test, although it will be offered in some states as per state rules | |||
* also dropped Subject Tests | |||
** the official reason for these changes was because of changes in college admissions requirements due to the COVID crisis | |||
** anecdotally, we can assume it was due to severe drop in revenue as result of the crisis | |||
=== 2023-24 change: shortened digital exam === | |||
* College Board announced in February of 2022 | |||
** the SAT and related exams will be administered digitally starting with the International SAT test in 2023 | |||
** the test will still be administered at a school or testing site | |||
** test will be taken on a laptop provided by CB at testing site | |||
* Format changes | |||
** 2 hour exam (approx) | |||
** Reading section passages to be shortened and with a single question per each | |||
*** likely a short paragraph as was in prior SAT formats | |||
** Calculators will be allowed on all math questions | |||
** the test will still score on 1600 point scale | |||
* CB stated purpose | |||
** CB says scores and college reports will be quicker | |||
* Likely purpose: cost savings | |||
** the digital format will save money for CB | |||
** the shorter exam will be easer | |||
** attempt to maintain relevancy for SAT | |||
*** especially while many colleges (such as Univ. California system) are not requiring or even considering SAT scores | |||
** to complete with ACT | |||
** CB still struggles with racial deviations in average scores | |||
* Rollout: | |||
** Spring 2023 the International SAT will be administered by computer | |||
** Fall 2023 the PSAT will be administered by computer | |||
** Spring 2024 the US SAT will be administered by computer | |||
* see | |||
** https://satsuite.collegeboard.org/digital | |||
=== Preparation & Practice Options === | |||
* the College Board published the "Official SAT Practice Book" | |||
** 2018 edition | |||
*** includes Practice tests 1-8 | |||
** 2021 edition | |||
*** includes Practice tests 1, 3, 4-10 | |||
* Princeton Review | |||
** started in 1981, now owned by ST Unitas, a Korean Ed-tech company | |||
== SAT exam college application requirements == | |||
* the University of California system stopped considering SAT and ACT tests for admissions | |||
* many other colleges and universities also dropped the requirement but continue to consider it | |||
* in March 2022, MIT announced that it would continue to require SAT/ ACT for admissions | |||
** [https://mitadmissions.org/blogs/entry/we-are-reinstating-our-sat-act-requirement-for-future-admissions-cycles/ We are reinstating our SAT/ACT requirement for future admissions cycles | MIT Admissions] | |||
== SAT exam prep strategies == | |||
* "practice" = replication of performance or game-day sitution | |||
** therefore, "SAT practice" is NOT online | |||
** online "practice" is "enrichment" not "practice" | |||
=== SAT enrichment === | |||
* enrichment means enhancement, getting better | |||
* there are many enrichment sites and manuals | |||
** treat them as enrichment and not practice | |||
* daily problems, vocabulary, etc. is excellent enrichment | |||
** but it is not practice | |||
* above all, ON-LINE "practice" is not practice | |||
** the test is not on-line: it is sit-down, on-paper | |||
** therefore, SAT prep that is not sit-down, online, with official practice or released actual tests, using pencil, clock, and bubble sheet IS NOT PRACTICE | |||
=== SAT practice === | |||
* practice is mimicking test-day situation | |||
** research shows that replication via practice of actual exam situation yields higher actual exam results | |||
* SAT practice looks like: | |||
** desk and chair | |||
** Official SAT practice test in booklet form | |||
*** not one-sided sheets, not online: booklet | |||
** using pencil and bubble sheet | |||
** analog clock (could be a computer app) | |||
** no distractions | |||
** full-length practice tests | |||
*** can be divided by section, but not less than a section | |||
=== Benefits of SAT practice === | |||
* familiarity with the types of passages and questions | |||
* developing elimination strategies | |||
* de-coding the way the test-makers build correct and, more importantly, incorrect answers | |||
* tome awareness | |||
* review of responses and understanding why answers are right or wrong | |||
* identify Easy-Medium-Hard questions and passages | |||
* increasing accuracy and efficiency with each practice exam | |||
* bubble sheets use and strategies | |||
* maintaining focus across full-length practice | |||
** building resistance to length and getting past boring | |||
** getting used to test-day situation | |||
** sitting upright & no distractions | |||
** use of juice, fruit-bar, or other natural source of glucose (natural sugar) for refreshment between sections as you would on test day | |||
** practicing breathing, stretching, fidgeting and other refocusing strategies | |||
== SAT Verbal == | == SAT Verbal == | ||
=== [[SAT Reading]] === | === [[SAT Reading]] === | ||
* SAT Reading Section Test Directions: | |||
** Students are to answer questions based upon: | |||
*** what is stated" in the text or graphs (explicit meanings, textual and direct comprehension) | |||
*** what is "implied" in the text or graphs (implicit meanings, inference, deduction, identification of author purpose and techniques) | |||
* SAT Reading Test Structure | |||
** Students have 65 minutes to answer 52 questions | |||
** Reading test has five readings with 10 or 11 questions each | |||
*** = average 13:00 min per reading passage | |||
*** note: two readings contain 11 questions so may take longer | |||
Go to [[SAT Reading|SAT Reading]] for more | |||
=== [[SAT Writing]] === | === [[SAT Writing]] === | ||
* SAT Writing Section Test Directions | |||
** students are to answer questions based upon: | |||
*** revising text for effective expression of ideas | |||
*** correcting grammatical errors, such as sentence structure, usage, or punctuation | |||
*** interpret graphs and apply to text corrections | |||
** some questions will refer to an underlined portion of a passage | |||
** some questions will ask you to consider a portion of a passage or the passage as a whole | |||
** the correct answer “most effectively improves the quality of writing” | |||
** correct answers conform to “conventions of standard English” | |||
*SAT Writing Test Structure | |||
** students have 35 min. to answer 44 questions | |||
** test has four readings passages with 11 questions each | |||
*** = average of 8:45 min per passage | |||
Go to [[SAT Writing|SAT Writing]] for more | |||
=== [[SAT Essay]] === | === [[SAT Essay]] === | ||
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* SAT Essay provides valuable practice and skills for rhetorical analysis | * SAT Essay provides valuable practice and skills for rhetorical analysis | ||
=== | === Other Resources & Pages === | ||
* [[Grammar]] | * [[Grammar]] | ||
* [[Parts of Speech]] | * [[Parts of Speech]] |