By Nathan Grant ’16, News Section Editor
To make standardized tests more aligned with the material studied in school, the College Board has redesigned the SAT. The “new” SAT will be released in March 2016 and will include the following sections:
1) Critical Reading
2) Math
3) An optional essay
These sections have been redesigned to stop students from simply filling out bubbles on an answer sheet. The College Board and colleges do not want students to simply pick an answer or eliminate answers through a process of elimination. Instead, the SAT has been redesigned so that students must justify their answers. Students must use what they learn in class and apply it to the test. As College Board President and CEO David Coleman stated, it is no longer sufficient to just “focus on tricks and trying to eliminate answer choices.”
The scoring for the SAT has shifted from its current score scale of 2400 back to 1600 (which was the maximum score in 2005). There is a separate score for the essay. In addition, test takers are no longer penalized for choosing incorrect answers. If you answer a question incorrectly, you will neither gain or nor lose points.
The College Board decided to redesign the SAT in an attempt to make the test more aligned with the curriculum taught in high schools throughout the nation. In recent years, the ACT has gained popularity because of its strong correlation with high school curriculum. Furthermore, many colleges have shifted to a test-optional policy that allows students to decide whether or not to submit their test scores.
The reading and writing sections include questions that require test takers to cite evidence for their answer choices. In addition, the SAT will include reading passages from a broader range of topics and disciplines including history, social studies, and literature. Furthermore, test takers will no longer be required to complete sentences with obscure words. So good news: you don’t have to spend as much time memorizing esoteric words like “tatterdemalion” or “panjandrum” – though you probably wouldn’t see those on the SAT anyway. Instead, students should know how to gather the meaning of words by context. As Coleman explains, these words are those that “students are likely to encounter again.”
Another change is that the math section no longer allows calculators to be used on every portion. Furthermore, this section will focus more on data analysis and real world problem-solving. Another major change is that the essay is optional. The essays will be scored separately from the rest of the test and the prompt will remain virtually the same in every test. As Coleman explained, the prompt will “ask students to consider a passage and write an essay that analyzes how the author makes his or her argument” (Note: this is very similar to AP English Literature prompts!).
The redesigned test will take about 3 hours, with an additional 50 minutes for the optional essay.
How to Prepare:
Now that you know how the SAT has changed, how can you best prepare for the SAT? Great question.
Pay attention in class! Do your homework and ask questions. The SAT was redesigned so that it follows the curriculum in class. However, many students may still want additional practice. The College Board suggests using their website, https://sat.collegeboard.org/home, where you can find online tools and guides. By clicking on this link, you will find free sample SAT questions and a free full SAT practice test (you can also find practice questions and study guides for SAT Subject Tests). There is also a Question of the Day (and a Question of the Day mobile app). The College Board has also partnered with Khan Academy, which has many online resources as well. You can also find practice books on the College Board’s website, as well as in a local bookstore or on Amazon – however, make sure you purchase an updated book for the new SAT.
If you need help or advice regarding the redesigned SAT, visit the college counseling office. Happy studying!
Sources:
http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/05/living/sat-test-changes-schools/index.html
https://sat.collegeboard.org/home
Image Source: http://steptests.com/2015/10/01/lets-talk-about-the-new-sat/
