Category Archives: test prep

SAT Prep to your Smartphone

June 10, 2014 Suzanne Shaffer

Say what? Yep. SAT prep to your smartphone via text message. What could possibly be easier. And here’s even better news–it’s affordable. Just $9 a month for the bronze plan and $19 a month for the silver plan. Why not reach kids where they are–on their smartphones?

What is Prepcube.com?

Prepcube.com is a learning management system that allows students to study for the SAT via SMS and our proprietary instant messenger platform. Prepcube has the ability to administer questions and video based solutions for real time feedback via sms and instant messenger. Our system allows students, parents and teachers to track all of their student’s results through our dashboard. Our data shows that students will engage our platform because they are more engaged when they interact with content via sms or instant messenger, which are their preferred mediums of communication.

How does it work?

As the system currently stands, students are pushed one question and solution via text message and have the option for mobile and web based private tutoring. After the initial question they are given the option to study unlimited amounts of questions via a web based instant messenger system. While on this web-based system they are also given the option for mobile and web based private tutoring.

Who is running the show?

All content was developed by the Co-Founder of Bell Curves, a leading standardized test preparation company. He oversees all aspects of the development of programs and materials, as well as the training of tutors. He has spent the last 18 years working as a standardized test prep trainer and materials developer at three different test prep companies.

Score! A developer who knows how to reach teens, has a background in SAT tutoring, and knows how to use the medium to help them learn.

App Tuesday, test prep

8 Vocabulary Apps

June 3, 2014 Suzanne Shaffer 1 Comment

Summer is upon us and it’s the perfect time to bone up on vocabulary for the standardized tests. And since your teens are never without their smartphones, here are seven vocabulary apps they will always have available to work on their vocabulary.

1. Vocabador

Vocabador is an inexpensive ($1.99) all purpose vocabulary app that allows users to study 400+ vocabulary words by using digital flashcards. The words are categorized by difficulty so that you can start with the easier material and work your way up. The flashcards include audio pronunciations, the part of speech, the definition, antonyms, synonyms and a sentence that puts the word in context.

2. MindSnacks

MindSnacks is a free app that is a game based design offering 9 games to help users practice their vocabulary. Geared mainly towards SAT-takers, but the app-makers also label it as appropriate for PSAT and GRE as well. Offers 500+ words and phrases, and even includes games that focus on antonyms. The app has a learning algorithm that tracks your progress and adjusts to help maximize your learning. A fun, easy to use, and effective app.

3. SAT Vocab

SAT Vocab app uses a technique that they call “confidence based repetition”, which is essentially a repetition method at particular time intervals. Users can rate how well they knew an answer (did it come to you easily or did you struggle/guess?) and then repeats the concepts you need to learn more. Offers 1400+ flashcards with 300+ word elements (prefixes/suffixes, etc), and the ability to browse and search for certain words.

4. Vocabulary.com

The Vocabulary.com app, a perfect tool to access at any time, is your personalized adaptive learning game. The dictionary was written for humans, by humans. Look up a word, and you’ll read a friendly explanation that you’ll actually remember. It’s as if your favorite teacher were explaining it to you. They include clever usage tips and thousands of real-world example sentences that’ll show you how words live in the wild and will make you more confident about using them yourself.

5. VocabAhead

VocabAhead combines words and their meanings with visual cues and contextual sentences to deliver a media-rich and highly memorable experience. Each word is supplemented with pictures, sounds and stories. This makes it easy to learn and fun to remember. With over 1000 words in the application, students get a wide choice of high-frequency SAT words with which to enhance their language skills.The application also has a built-in self-testing feature whereby students may quiz themselves as and when ready. Students can learn and remember new words on the go in small manageable time chunks instead of being tied down to academic paraphernalia.

Get the app

6. IntelliVocab

If you’re a logophile or want to boost your vocabulary for a competitive exam like the SAT, IntelliVocab is a fun, almost addictive way to do so. The app quizzes you with multiple choice questions on word definitions, synonyms, and usage. When you answer questions incorrectly, the AI makes a note of it and then asks you about those words again later, in different contexts (e.g., instead of asking you to choose the straight definition, it’ll offer a fill-in-the-blank test).

Vocabulary.com and the App

May 6, 2014 Suzanne Shaffer

Since this is App Tuesday and I’ve been focusing on apps that help students with college prep, I came across a website and an accompanying app that make learning vocabulary not only productive, but fun. Vocabulary.com uses the following methodology

1. Answer a few questions

They created more than 120,000 questions designed to help you learn words
2. We build a model of your knowledge

Their magical technology models your brain. The more you play, the more they know about your vocabulary knowledge.
3. They predict which vocabulary words you don’t know and teach them to you

Get a question wrong? They will schedule Review and Progress questions so that you’ll learn the word, and won’t forget it in the future.
4. You learn useful words and improve your vocabulary

Track your progress as you quickly master the words that are essential to success in an academic or business environment.

It’s that simple. You can also access vocabulary lists from great literary works, historical documents, speeches, the news and vocabulary lists for test prep.

It’s Like a Personal Trainer for Your Brain

They use their own adaptive learning system to ensure that you get the right question at the right time. They build a model of your vocabulary and abilities as you answer each question, and then serve you up with questions that are not too hard and not too easy. From the results of these questions, they determine what words to focus on in your personalized learning program.

A Personalized List of Words Just for You

As you answer questions, they begin to compile a list of words to learn. If you get a question wrong or choose to use a hint, the word is added to the list. Once they add a word to this list, they keep working with you until you’ve mastered that word. You can see your list by clicking on the My Progress tab on the top of the screen.

Vocabulary.com-The App

If that’s not enough, vocabulary learning becomes an addictive game. Accumulate points, achievements, and badges while competing against your Facebook friends, your classmates, or other members of the Vocabulary.com community.

Check out their website AND the app for iOs or Android devices. For just $2.99 it’s a bargain and an investment for the future. Use both the website and the app to build a strong vocabulary for not only test prep, but to prepare for the rigorous reading and writing in college.

App Tuesday, test prep

6 Test Prep Apps

April 29, 2014 Suzanne Shaffer

Today’s apps of choice are test prep apps. Some are free, others are free to test, and some are paid apps. Knowing how important test prep is, use them to help prep for standardized tests.

1. EduPath SAT Prep

EduPath’s adaptive platform picks up on a student’s weaknesses and exercises them until they’re strong. It’s optimized for in-between moments like waiting for the bus, between classes, or before bed. Their world-class instructors are trained in the same proven methodologies that power their technology, providing constant, seamless instruction between the App and live sessions. There is also an industry-first dashboard for parents that lets them see the student’s progress in real-time—and provides an easy starting point for positive conversations about the college admissions process.

2. SAT Question of the Day

Created by the College Board, the SAT Question of the Day App provides real SAT questions and SAT preparation materials from the test maker. With the question of the day Application you can answer a real SAT question each day.

3. ACT Student

ACT Student helps users anticipate and manage the ACT Test experience. Using the “Practice” feature, students can attempt answers to practice items and gain feedback from their attempts. “Account” allows users to log in for limited, read-only access to their own registration and score information. Accessing the link to ACT’s mobile site, users can find straightforward answers to typical questions test takers have about events leading up to the test and the test day itself.

4. eTextPrep

Though it’s not an app designed for a smartphone or tablet, this new mobile service is simple and targets the activity woven into nearly every high school student’s life—text messaging. Students receive three vocabulary words a day via text to help them prepare for the SAT, ACT, or an array of Advanced Placement tests. The eTextPrep premise is simple – students receive 2 to 3 SAT, ACT, AP, Middle School Challenge or word-of-the-day text messages (SMS) that contain essential vocabulary words, their definitions and parts of speech. Students simply click, look and learn. It’s mobile. It works. It’s that easy.

5. BenchPrep

This comprehensive product for SAT and ACT is intended to help students prepare stress-free, giving them everything they need in one place; hundreds of practice questions, detailed explanations, and high-quality reading content from the world’s most respected publishers. With study plans to guide students along, and material that syncs across all devices, they will be ready for test day.

6. AllenPrep

Allen Prep has published multiple test prep iPad/iPhone apps for multiple exams. The ACT and SAT apps are free to download and include a substantial number of test questions for each section of each exam. Once the apps are downloaded, you can access the question bank by entering a valid email address. An email with an activation code will be sent to this email address. Each mock exam includes a free sample test, covering all subjects, and includes hundreds of questions. You can also make an in-app purchase of different test banks to target a specific area.

test prep

The New (and Improved) SAT

March 6, 2014 Suzanne Shaffer 4 Comments

The College Board announced today some sweeping changes to the SAT. These changes will take affect in the Spring of 2016. If you have a high school, college-bound freshmen—heads up! The test is going to change drastically. According to the College Board, “The redesigned SAT will ask students to apply a deep understanding of the few things shown by current research to matter most for college readiness and success. They’ll find questions modeled on the work of the best classroom teachers and perform tasks practiced in rigorous course work. The SAT redesign is centered on eight key changes.”

In order to better understand these changes, I’ve gathered some excellent articles on the subject for you to pursue further reading.

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Jenn Cohen, the Dallas SAT Prep Examiner and owner and founder of Word-Nerd.com, along with an SAT prep tutoring service geared toward ADHD students, had this to say:

Overall, my take is that the SAT is going to be an easier test, and that it is clearly making some changes based on the growing popularity of the ACT. I wonder if the SAT is actually tolling its own death-knell by shifting to an easier product that’s less useful to colleges. But on the other hand, maybe a lower than average score will more clearly signal to colleges that a student is not ready for college level work. I guess it remains to be seen!

You can read more of her comments at Examiner.com–New SAT Coming in Spring 2016.

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Lynn O’Shaughnessy, author of The College Solution and Shrinking the Cost of College, as well as a regular contributor on CBS MoneyWatch, voiced her thoughts on the changes:

What I found encouraging today was Coleman’s other big announcement that the College Board has entered into a partnership with the Kahn Academy to develop a state-of-the-art test-prep system for any students who want to tackle the SAT. This SAT program will be free.

Sal Kahn, the creator of the Kahn Academy, (see photo) who was present for the announcement, said that the test-prep program will go well beyond providing tips to test takers. The program will identify student deficiencies and teach them the fundamentals, of say, fractions or basic algebra, when needed.

The College Board plans to train tutors, counselors and mentors on how teenagers can take full advantage of the Kahn Academy resources. Coleman noted that the College Board has never entrusted its name to an outside organization until now.

You can read more of what Lynn has to say about the new test on her blog: Big Changes In Store for the SAT.

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The College Board in their announcement today, outlined how the test will change:

When students open their SAT test books in spring 2016, they’ll encounter an SAT that is more focused and useful than ever before. The full specifications of the exam along with extensive sample items for each section will be available on April 16, 2014. The redesigned SAT will focus on the knohttp://www.free-tv-video-online.me/wledge and skills that current research shows are most essential for college and career readiness and success. The exam will reflect the best of classroom work.

For more detailed information and the changes to the SAT, go to the College Board’s site: Delivering Opportunity, Changes to the SAT.

Guest Posts, test prep

Top 5 Testing Tips

February 11, 2014 Suzanne Shaffer

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testing — Photo Courtesy of Student Loan Network

Exam time is a stressful and tiring time. Nights leading up to the exam are usually filled with studying and pulling all-nighters at the library and, sometimes, you may just be unsure about how to approach studying for a particular class. Whether you like to plan your studying ahead of time or you don’t think about the exam until the last minute, here are 5 testing tips to help you ace those tests.

Prioritize. In college, there might be times when you have to study for several different classes. It can get overwhelming and stressful. In these cases, prioritizing your workload can be helpful. Dedicate more time studying for an exam that can make or break your grade rather than an exam that won’t affect your grade very much. Once you have strategized your studying, be sure you are reviewing only content that will be on the test and you are not wasting any time by studying irrelevant content.
Review with others. Reviewing with others can be a great way to study for the exam, and oftentimes there will be review sessions provided by the professor. Many will focus on topics that will be covered heavily on the test, which can be helpful in deciding what to study later. Reviewing material with other students can also be helpful. You can teach material you’re confident in, which will make you understand the topics instead of just memorizing them. In turn, your classmates may help you pick up on material you are unsure of. If you are studying with friends, try to stay on topic and don’t study with friends who are not studying for the same exam as it can only lead to distractions.
Study smart. Do not try to reread the whole textbook before the exam. Even if you can get through the book, it can be information overload and it will be hard to remember all of it. Hopefully, you have kept up with the reading throughout the semester so you can go back over your notes instead of attempting to read the book. Skimming through notes can also help you find topics you’re not confident with.
Take breaks. Taking breaks during your study sessions is a must. A good study session should consist of 45 minutes of studying followed by a 15-minute break. This method gives you a mental break and it can help you stay focused since you just need to study for 45 minutes. Eat a healthy snack, take a walk, or talk to friends and you will come back to studying refreshed. Eating and drinking water regularly helps fuel your brain and exercising can help clear your mind.
Be prepared. Before you go into your exam, pack everything you might need. Bring a water bottle to stay hydrated as well. Dress in confortable layers so you are prepared for varying temperatures in your testing room. Head into the exam early so you are not in a rush and stressed out before you even start the testing process.

Exams can be exhausting and full of anxiety but they can be manageable by studying smart and being prepared. These tips can help you go into the next exam with confidence.

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About today’s guest blogger: Priya Sudendra is a recent graduate of University of Colorado and a staff writer for CollegeFocus, a website dedicated to helping students deal with the challenges of college, including housing, finance, style, health, relationships, and transferring from a community collegeto a four-year university.

You can follow CollegeFocus on Twitter and Facebook.

Guest Posts, test prep

4 Ways to Prep for the SAT (for FREE)

January 21, 2014 Suzanne Shaffer 1 Comment

For many high school juniors, second semester means not only a focus on keeping grades and staying busy with extracurricular activities, but also an increased focus on the SAT. The College Board’s three spring test dates are March 8th, May 7th and June 3rd. If you do enough reading, you might think taking prep courses that cost thousands of dollars is the only way to get the score you want. But the truth is, there are plenty of low-cost and free ways to prep for the SAT.

Here are a few of our favorites:

Take a Free Practice Test

It’s impossible to know if you need extra English tutoring without knowing first what your score on the reading and writing sections are. Every student gets a free practice test from The College Board; take the test early on to identify key areas of strengths and where you need a little extra help. If you’re hitting your target score on a given section, there’s no need to spend hours of time preparing. On the other hand, if you find your score isn’t as high as you’d like, you now know a few areas to focus on.

Pick up a Magazine

Learning SAT vocabulary words isn’t always the most fun process. You can try the old fashioned route — writing index cards and then dutifully drilling the words into your head. Or, try an approach that’s slightly more fun (and will be better for you in the long-term, too). Grab a copy of the New Yorker, The Atlantic Monthly or The Economist and tell yourself you’ll read an article every day. Every time you come across a word you don’t know, make a note of it on an index card and write the definition on the back. After you finish each article, give yourself an extra challenge that will help you prep for the reading comprehension section of the SAT. Figure out the author’s main point, and identify the pieces of the author’s argument as she makes them in her piece.

Brush Up On Basics With Khan Academy and YouTube

For most students who are entering the second semester of their junior year of high school, the math on the SAT isn’t particularly complicated or advanced; it’s more that there’s a lot to remember. If you need math help, Khan Academy offers a great (and completely free) resource: videos that go over every single math problem in The College Board Official SAT Study Guide. If those aren’t enough, you can dig deeper into tougher concepts on both Khan Academy and YouTube. For example, if you’re having problems understanding rational numbers, there’s a host of great video content available.

Work with a Friend

Chances are that if you’re studying for the SAT, your friends are, too. One of the best ways to drill a tough concept into your head is to teach it to someone else. So sit down with a classmate and commit to going through a half hour of questions on your own. When time is up, compare answers and if your answers are different, see if you can convince your friend why your answer is right — or vice versa. Often times, the act of having to explain something out-loud can help you get a better grasp on the problem too!

The SAT is just one piece of your overall college application, but it is an important one. The good news is, there’s no reason so drop thousands of dollars on a prep course. Just give yourself plenty of time and build out a study strategy that includes the above ideas — you’ll be heading toward a 2,400 in no time at all!

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Today’s guest post is from Laura Oppenheimer who works at InstaEDU, an online tutoring service that instantly connects students who need help with tutors from top colleges.

test prep

Direct Hits Vocabulary–an EARLY Christmas present

December 19, 2013 Suzanne Shaffer

An early Christmas present? What’s the catch? There is none. All you have to do is follow the links below and download the book from Amazon for your Kindle. Holiday break is a great time to study for standardized tests and with vocabulary a key component, every student should take advance of this FREE offer.

Today (December 19, 2013) until 11:59. PST the Direct Hits Vocabulary Books will be available for FREE!

The link for the Volume 1, Direct Hits Core Vocabulary of the SAT is http://amzn.to/1cz29G8

and for Volume 2, Direct Hits Toughest Vocabulary of the SAT is http://amzn.to/18OYjrh.

Students who already have the very popular paperback version can now add the book to their Kindle device at no charge. Especially if they plan to take a standardized test such as the SAT, PSAT, SSAT, and even the GRE, it can be even easier to build vocabulary skills.

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Guest Posts, test prep, Uncategorized

Last minute study tips for the PSAT

October 17, 2013 Suzanne Shaffer

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psat

For many high school students, their first big standardized test is the PSAT, which is scheduled for this Saturday across the country. The PSAT is more or less a practice test for the SAT, but with one big distinction; scoring well can get you named as a National Merit Scholar finalist and earn you cash for college. It’s the perfect test to figure out your best strategies for test prep — especially if you’re a sophomore taking it for the first time.

Many students don’t prep for the PSAT like they would for the SAT or ACT. If you’re starting today or just looking to squeeze in a few last minute prep sessions before Saturday’s test, read on for some quick tips and tricks.

Take a Practice Test

The PSAT takes about 2 hours from start to finish. If you’ve never sat for an exam of that length, going through a practice exam can accomplish three things. First, it will give you confidence that you can actually sit for the complete test and get through the entire exam. Second, it will give you a sense of areas you can make quick improvements on. For example, you may discover that you aren’t getting through all of the math questions, or that you’re rusty on some aspects of the geometry but are racing through the algebra. Third and finally, it will get you familiar with the test structure. Remember that the PSAT has the exact same structure on every single test; only the questions change.

Brush Up on What You Don’t Know

Now that you’ve taken a test and identified areas for improvement, drill down on those areas. Don’t waste time reviewing every topic covered on the test since undoubtedly you’re zipping through some questions without an issue. If you’re struggling with Algebra, spend time getting Algebra help and reviewing factoring and quadratics, instead of using your valuable last minute study time reviewing geometry concepts.

Develop a Strategy For Skipping Questions

Figure out when you’re going to skip questions, and when you’re going to guess. According to the College Board (who administers the PSAT), “Students can earn an above-average score by getting only half the questions right and omitting answers for the rest of the questions.” Random guessing won’t help you earn a great score, but if you can narrow your answer choices down to two answers, it’s worth it to guess (you’ll lose ¼ point for every wrong answer). Give yourself a time window for answering tough questions; you won’t benefit from spending 5 minutes on question you inevitably get wrong. If you’re struggling to figure out how to tackle a question in the first 15 seconds and don’t have an inkling of how to solve it, move on; you can always come back later.

Don’t Stress Too Much

Remember that the PSAT is a practice test (except for the National Merit qualification). It won’t determine the rest of your life and stressing out too much won’t help you much anyway. Make sure you eat a healthy dinner the night before, get a good night’s sleep, and then eat a healthy breakfast the morning of. If you can, get some exercise the day before as well (working out can aid in brain function).

The PSAT is the first of many standardized tests — SATs, ACTs, APs, placement tests — that you’ll encounter in your life. And for the most part, this is one of the few exams whose outcome is not all that important. Use this as an opportunity to build up good test-taking strategies that you can apply not only to the PSAT, but to other standardized tests as you come across them in the future.

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Today’s guest blogger, Laura Oppenheimer, works for InstaEDU, the online tutoring company that offers online PSAT test prep and tutoring.

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Category Archives: test prep