Tag Archives: SAT

admissions, test prep

Test Optional Colleges

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What is a “test optional” college?

It is a college and/or university that deemphasizes the use of standardized tests by making admissions decisions about substantial numbers of applicants who recently graduated from U.S. high schools without using the SAT or ACT. Some schools exempt students who meet grade-point average or class rank criteria while others require SAT or ACT scores but use them only for placement purposes or to conduct research studies.

“Testing hall of shame” proposed by FairTest.org

This week at the Association of College Counselors in Independent Schools, Mr. Schaeffer, public-education director for FairTest, described his plans to compile a “testing hall of shame” — a list of colleges that use cutoff scores in their evaluations of applicants. According to a recent article in the Chronicle of Higher Education:

He hopes that the list will persuade such institutions to stop relying on minimum ACT and SAT scores, a practice that the National Association for College Admission Counseling, among other groups, has condemned. Mr. Schaeffer predicted that more and more colleges would go test-optional as the “demand” for such policies grew among future applicants. If nothing else, the “testing hall of shame” would make for a memorable press release in a world of bland press releases. Mr. Schaeffer, who hopes to publish the list in the fall, said it would include only colleges that explicitly state their cutoffs (some institutions use them without saying so). This would be one distinction that colleges probably won’t tout on their Web sites.

The controversy over the benefits of using tests and not using tests for admission standards will no doubt continue. However, if your college-bound teen’s SAT scores are less than stellar, you might want to check out the list of colleges at FairTest.org. The list is growing with Colorado College and Marist College adding their names to the list.

admissions, college planning, test prep, Uncategorized

Is the SAT just a test?

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Preparing for the SAT/ACT tests cause panic and stress for college-bound teens and their parents. Why? Because colleges use those test scores as part of the college admissions evaluation process. Some parents are willing to shell out massive amounts of money to assure that their teens do well on those tests. But controversy around the “cost vs return” swirls.

I had a Twitter conversation the other day with Elizabeth King, an SAT coach and author of “Outsmarting the SAT” and she made a profound statement:

I’m just ideologically opposed to test prep without educational value.

She makes an excellent point. As parents, we worry and fret about those scores and often nag our teens to “study” for the SAT. Is it all about the score? Or are we concerned that they improve their vocabulary, writing and math skills? Do we worry that they might not have that high score or worse yet, fall into that “average” category. Are we so concerned about the score that we forget there is little value in any test prep that has no educational value?

Jenn Cohen of Word-Nerd.com, a free SAT vocabulary prep site, makes a valid point in her recent blog: The SAT and Me, Me, Me. She proposes that it’s not the test itself that is flawed, but the inability of parents and students to accept the concept of being “average”:

…a test that generates primarily average scores must be a bad test in the culture of narcissism, so it’s roundly criticized for its inability to capture the “unique” abilities of average students.  The SAT awards scores that separate students from each other, and trophies are certainly not awarded to everyone.  Tests that might make our children feel less than extraordinary are awful, and should be eliminated… Accepting the test as an opportunity, rather than an act of persecution, can open doors and motivate students to live up to their actual potential.

Let’s look at the big picture here. As parents, we have a tendency to demand and expect the best of our children. That “best” often translates into indulging them and often overlooking their failures and faults. We will do just about anything to see that they get into their first choice college. But will we encourage learning? Or will we drop a bundle on test prep as a means to an end–a high test score? Will we criticize the test because it levels the playing field and gives those students with poor grades a chance to shine? Or criticize it because it says that our college-bound teen is “average”?

The bottom line–Promote learning and not just your version of success. Remember that even “average” students excel in life. Encourage your teen to read and expand their vocabulary. The benefits will produce more than just a good test score.

If you liked this post, you might also like:

Creating an SAT Study Plan

Outsmarting the SAT

college guidance, college planning, test prep

Knewton SAT Prep

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Recently I received a tour of Knewton’s SAT Prep portal online. I have to admit, I was skeptical. Based on personal SAT prep courses with my daughter, I always felt those type courses were too expensive and didn’t significantly improve her SAT scores like they promised.

However, I was pleasantly surprised with Knewton’s services. Here’s why I liked them:

  • The parents have access to the student’s progress and receive a weekly email report outlining what the student has done
  • It’s a 1-year membership allowing 24/7 access to all their resources
  • It’s flexible as far as addressing everyone’s time constraints–live and on demand
  • It evaluates the student’s progress and analyzes their strengths and weaknesses
  • Affordability

A student can take the practice tests from the College Board’s blue book and input their answers online at Knewton. The tests are then graded allowing the system to recommend a study regimen after evaluating the student’s strengths and weaknesses. They read and grade the essays and give the student feedback.

The student will attend 10 sessions with 2 lessons per session. They can review the material ahead of time if needed and they can watch the class session on demand while stopping, fast forwarding and rewinding. If they can’t make a specific class, they can chose a more convenient time and attend another session.

Knewton also offers a money-back GUARANTEE if your student does not receive a 150 point jump in their overall SAT score after completing their online classes.

Knewton is offering a $200 price reduction off their $490 fee, making the 1-year membership only $290. Just enter the code: SUMMER200 at checkout. This code expires on June 30th so don’t delay! Plus, anyone can have a 14-day FREE TRIAL which includes jumping in on live classes. Based on other SAT prep courses, that’s a bargain in my book!

Here are some screen shots of the program:

Email Update

Student’s My Work Page

Parent Progress Report


admissions, college planning, parenting, test prep, Uncategorized

Top 5 Test Prep Sites

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Your college-bound teen MUST do some sort of test prep. It will improve their scores and give them confidence when they take the test. Preparation and familiarization with the test and its formulas will give them an edge over the students who choose not to prepare.

Here are my recommendations for test prep sites:

elizabethonline

1. TutorsForTestPrep–Elizabeth writes a blog that gives some great tips and discusses the nuances of the tests. She takes the test herself every year and is familiar with its content and knows how to help your teen improve their scores. Read what Elizabeth said about her services:

Outsmarting the SAT

wordnerd

2. WordNerd–Sheldon walks your teen through practice tests, smart sets (words that go together), study roots (prefixes and suffixes) and gives a “nerd” word of the day. This is a good practice site to improve vocabulary. Read Sheldon’s advice on SAT prep:

Creating an SAT Study Plan

mindfish

3. MindFish—Your teen can play an SAT test game to help them master skills and you can dialogue with test prep and admissions professionals and other interested parents.

collegeboardsattestprep

4. CollegeBoard SAT Test Prep–The College Boards FREE test prep site for the SAT with practice tests, question of the day and sample practice questions.

allenprep

5. AllenPrep–Get an Ipod/Itouch/Iphone App here for just $9.99 and your teen can use it to improve their SAT vocabulary. They also provide testing software and offer a 2-day FREE trial to check it out.

college planning, test prep

Creating an SAT Study Plan

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When it comes to studying for the SAT, most students don’t know where to begin.  The easy way out is to head over to the local branch of one of the big prep companies.  But, that route can be inefficient time-wise, not to mention extremely expensive.  The good news is that you can create an SAT course yourself!  All you need is some good materials and a little organization.   Here are a few tips to get you started:

  1. Be sure to get started early, ideally at LEAST three months before test day.  Unless you’re prepping over the summer, school and other activities take up most of your day.  Allow yourself a long time frame so you don’t have to cram for eight hours a day the week before the test.
  2. Plan to average about 30 a minutes a day over that time.  Note that’s an average, not a rule.  Spend a half hour here and there, with maybe couple of hours on the weekend.  Grab fifteen minutes before soccer practice.  Keep a journal of what you’ve done, what still needs to be done, and how much time you’re spending.  And be honest!  You might be amazed how much (or little) time you’re devoting.
  3. Take a timed, as close to real as possible, practice test for starting your prep.  I always recommend downloading the free SAT from the College Board’s website and using that as your pre-test.  Be sure to use the printed version.  Don’t take the online version, since you won’t be taking the real thing online!  Use your results as a guide for your prep.
  4. As for materials, there are unlimited options.  There are online courses, books, iPhone apps, podcasts, computer programs and on and on.  Check out a few options, and see what makes sense for your learning preferences and budget.  The only must-have is the Official SAT Study Guide from the College Board.  It should be your primary source for practice sections.  Use any other resources you like to learn strategy, review math and build vocabulary.  Of course, I am biased towards Word-Nerd.com for SAT vocabulary.
  5. In the early stages of your prep, do practice questions at your own pace.  Treat it as an open book test.  When you make an error, analyze it.  Always learn from your mistakes, as well as your successes.  The same types of questions appear repeatedly on the SAT.  So analyze those errors.  When you encounter a similar question on test day, you’ll know what to do!  If you’re stumped by a particular question, ask a friend or a teacher for help.  Or hire a tutor for an hour or two to get you through the tough stuff.  Wyzant.com is an amazing source for tutors nationwide if you need ideas.
  6. Lastly, ramp up your efforts as the big day nears.  By the last couple of weeks, you should be taking practice sections from the Official Study Guide under timed conditions.  Just be sure to give yourself a break the night before the test.  Nothing will hurt your score more than being tired on test day!

If you have a question I haven’t covered, feel free to send me an email at jenn@word-nerd.com – your question may be the topic of a future post on The Fat Envelope, Word-Nerd’s test prep and college admissions blog.  Good luck everyone!

Today’s guest post is by Jennifer Cohen, President and Chief Word-Nerd at Word-Nerd.com. She offers some great (realistic) tips on preparing for upcoming SAT’s. Word-Nerd.com is your best resource for efficient, fun SAT and PSAT vocabulary prep.

college costs, college guidance, college planning, scholarships, social networks, test prep, Uncategorized

Outsmarting the SAT

elizabeth-kingToday’s guest post is by Elizabeth King, author of “Outsmarting the SAT”. She has successfully led students to score gains of well over 100 points on every section of the SAT. She takes the test every year herself and knocks it out of the ballpark.

The test prep companies would like you to believe that you can’t prepare for their tests, or that you’re already prepared just by having gone to high school. This sounds great: test prep companies don’t have to endorse folks who can help you prepare and it seems like you, the student, is off the hook.

However, I come bearing great news: yes, it’s entirely possible to drastically change your score on both the SAT and ACT. I know, the companies that produce them tell you that they each test “what you’ve already learned in high school” in varying ways. In a perfect world, that would be true, but it’s far more likely that you either never learned some of the material or you don’t remember it when you see it. Both the SAT and ACT test skills you started learning around the age of ten. You’ll want to brush up.

I’m also going to let you in on a little secret: your friends (the people against whom you’ll be competing for college admission) may be preparing and just not admitting it. Yes, seriously. Let’s face it: acting like you care about standardized tests is not traditionally considered cool. However, I can’t tell you how many students I have that are friends that say “don’t tell so-and-so we’re coming to you” or the number of kids that are tucked away by themselves at the bookstore cafe on Saturday morning perusing a prep book. Not only that, I would say that it’s extremely common for someone to tell me his SAT score (happens all the time) and quickly tack on a lame excuse, like, but I was out partying the night before or but it’s not like I studied for it.

Bsat-testut let’s face it. College admissions officers don’t care how cool you are and are given no indication of how much you may or may not have studied for exams. They simply see a number and assess you accordingly. Moreover, while you may think you’ll get away with an hour or two of looking over a sample test the night before, in some areas or schools it’s completely normal to spend six months to a year preparing for the test. Right now, somewhere in the world, a student against whom you’ll be competing for college entry is preparing for the SAT or ACT.

Now, look: just because I’m asking you to prepare doesn’t mean I’m condemning you to taking one of those 8 week 4 hours every Saturday morning courses with a huge prep company. In fact, the National Association of College Admissions Counselors released a study in 2009 that said your score will likely only go up around 30 points if you do so. I don’t know about you, but if I’m going to invest 32 hours of my life preparing for something, I want to make some serious progress.

Here are some first steps to get you on the road to a score that represents you well:

–Pick your battle. Take a practice ACT and SAT test (available on the web). Think about which test is more comfortable for you. The math on the ACT covers more topics, but it generally feels more straightforward. The reading comprehension on the SAT is more conceptual; you’ll also want to consider the breadth of your vocabulary and how quickly you can learn new words. Vocab is pivotal on the SAT. The pace of the ACT is a little faster; the SAT is slower but longer.

–Prepare. Get a copy of The Official SAT Study Guide or The Real ACT Prep Guide and thoughtfully go through the material. For every mistake you make you’ll want write a note, and every mistake will fall under one of two categories: a rule/fact/equation you didn’t know (e.g. a particular geometry rule) or a question style (e.g. you know a particular geometry rule but you didn’t realize you needed to use it because of a confusing element in the question). Write all this down and review it!

–Ask for help. Rather than looking for guessing strategies on those questions with which you struggle, take the time to actually learn the material. Find a tutor or get a prep book that thoroughly teaches concepts rather than guessing rules. Remember that it’s possible to learn everything tested on the SAT and ACT, and I guarantee you’ll walk into the test more confident and away from the test center with a higher score and a better shot at entering the college of your dreams if you’ve taken the time to learn the material.

–Plan ahead. Know test dates ahead of time and don’t wait till the last minute. Remember, the competition is out there. Arm yourself and earn a score you can be proud of.

Contact Elizabeth at:
Elizabeth King Coaching, Inc.
http://tutorsfortestprep.com
On Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/elizabethonline

college guidance, test prep

College Test Prep for the rest of us

sat-test-prepLet’s face it. Those students who have some sort of test prep prior to taking the SAT and/or ACT tend to do better. There are always those Type A parents that shell out hundreds and thousands of dollars to get their teens ready for test day. Those programs are available to anyone, but what about the rest of us who can’t afford that added expense because we’re scraping together all our extra pennies saving for college?

Since preparation ALWAYS pays off, here’s some good news on how your teen can do some summer test prep on a limited budget:

  • Check out the SAT and ACT official websites. They have free resources that your teen can use from sample essays, to practice tests, and the SAT question of the day. Signing up for this free email is a great way for your teen to get acquainted with the types of questions on the SAT test.
  • Use the resources available at the library. Many libraries offer FREE prep courses. In addition, you can check out practice tests books.
  • Check out The Princeton Review online. They offer all kinds of FREE practice tools and are offering a NEW SAT Vocabulary challenge for $4.99 for the IPhone and the ITouch.
  • Check out test prep companies in your area. Many of them offer FREE, no obligation tests for students.

If you encourage your teen to take advantage of these preparation tools during the summer, they will be less stressed and more prepared when test day rolls around in the fall.