Help with the revised SAT

BOOK NOTES by Dr. Joan Ruddiman

   If you wanted to attend Adam Robinson’s SAT seminar last week and missed it, read on. I went for you.
   Robinson is the author of the New York Times best seller "Cracking the SAT" that he wrote 20 years ago. He pointed out that this is the only SAT prep book to make the prestigious best seller list. His current book is "The Rocket Review Revolution: The Ultimate Guide to the New SAT" that is completely updated, and comes with its own CD Rom.
   Robinson, an intense guy, approaches his subject with missionary zeal — observations that are not at all intended to be disparaging in tone. The information he provides is practical. I appreciated that he does not lambaste the test, but just accepts it as a necessary protocol in the college process. I also liked that Robinson’s presentation was addressed to the students in the audience — including some of my current middle-schoolers as well as many former students. Though parents were listening intently, Robinson made it clear that he was there for the students who have to take this test.
   He shared some good test-taking tips and then what to expect from this new SAT.
   First, what’s new. In his introduction, Robinson welcomes students "to the Revolution. The ‘new’ SAT is a Big Deal," one he calls "seismic" in its changes.
   In the math section, a major difference is that the quantitative comparison questions have been dropped. However, a bigger change may not be as apparent, but is significant. Whereas the former SAT was drawn from eighth- through ninth-grade math concepts, the new test "has been ratcheted up a few notches" to include mathematical concepts that students learn during sophomore and junior year.
   The verbal portion has dramatically changed. First, the analogy section has been (sadly, I think) dropped in order to make room for comprehension questions for essays with few (60-140) words. The traditional reading passages (450-800 words) are still in place with the addition of sentence completion questions. This portion is called the SAT Reading Test.
   The big change, however, is the addition of a new section called The SAT Writing Test that has a written essay portion and a multiple choice portion that covers grammatical and other writing problems. Essentially, this is like the former SAT II Writing Test, which no longer exists. This test has its own 200-800 score. Now the "perfect" SAT score is 2400 rather than the 1600 (800 Math/800 Verbal) of old.
   At this point, parents are panicking and kids are totally tuned out as they go into denial mode. But here’s the good news, says Robinson: "Unless you have taken the test before, the new test is really not a big deal."
   More than 2.3 million kids take the test annually. Bear in mind that if they survived it, so can you. Here are some of Robinson’s tips shared with his audience.
   He begins by strongly emphasizing and explicating the idea "to take pains." The SAT is unlike any school test. The test is scored by a computer, or in the case of the writing portion, by English majors/teachers who work from a tightly aligned rubric. Robinson advice is to think "The Terminator." There are no "silly mistakes" that get a pass, no do-overs. Any mistake is just wrong. No point awarded. Therefore, "take pains" to answer what is asked, and if you spend any time with the question, put down an answer.
   Robinson’s exact words if you don’t finish the test: "Not to worry."
   The only people who must finish the test, he says, are those who anticipate making a perfect score. For the vast majority, remember to take pains in making sure you have the right answer, take pains in figuring out the answer (estimate a math problem and use scrap paper to think an question through more quickly), and take pains to guess effectively if you have spent any time at all with a question.
   Racing to get done is not the objective!
   You lose points for every wrong answer and every skipped answer. Better to guess effectively than skip an answer. Better to skip an answer than waste time struggling to deal with a question that is way over your head.
   Tips for writing the essay:
   • Do NOT use personal experiences.
   • Do NOT reflect on what you think or feel.
   • DO support your argument with examples from literature and history (before 1970), biographies or any academic subject.
   Robinson provided a typical essay prompt that required the candidate to reflect on a familiar maxim and "discuss." Students, you are expected to take a point of view, draw from any recent piece of literature you’ve read or era of history that you know well (not pop culture) and develop your argument illustrated with examples from sources that the scorers will appreciate.
   As in any writing, think audience and purpose. The audience is an English teacher type (actually, two of them reading independently of each other.) Your purpose is to answer the question in as efficient and cogent style as possible.
   Robinson shared an interesting sidebar on how these essays are graded, which is not a secret. The essays are scanned into a computer and put on a database. The scorers, who are trained how to read and score using a 1-6 point rubric, access essays from wherever they are (California, Iowa, Maine), read, score and submit. The second reader does the same, with the objective to have a score that is within the same range as the first reader’s.
   Parents, please note: Spelling is not an issue. The scorers realize that they are reading a first draft. They would rather see a decent attempt at a word that captures the idea than a perfectly spelled paper that indicates little critical thinking.
   Studying grammar, per se, is also not a productive way to prepare for this test. The essay scorers are looking for the development of ideas, which is reflected in how the candidate conveys ideas through well-organized writing. Awareness of how punctuation and sentence structure capture ideas is best learned by reading good writers. (My editorializing.)
   Robinson pointed out the practicalities of writing the essay. Fill the two lined pages, for one. In the 25 minutes allotted for this portion, students should be able to fill the pages. One example is good, two better and three examples — from literature, history or any other academic discipline — are ideal.
   Indent paragraphs. Write legibly. Small, cramped, light script will be read, but with difficulty. Make it easy on the readers. Don’t default to "in conclusion… " You can do better than that!
   The reading section includes sentence completion that involves "really hard vocabulary." Robinson’s rule of thumb: an easy question will take an easy answer; a hard question will require a hard (obscure) word. But, he points out, you don’t need to know all the words. You need to know four of the five choices and then eliminate at least three. Then think, "hard sentence, hard word."
   Again, if you spend anytime with a question, then guess. "Take pains… "
   Robinson suggests buying two SAT prep books — the official SAT study guide and his own. The first provides what is on the test, the second how to take the test.
   I agree with Robinson that familiarity with the test and running some practice tests is wise preparation. Beyond working your way through Robinson’s book and reviewing what the SAT guide says, time spent "studying" for the SAT is wasted. Memorizing lists of SAT words is no more effective — says research on the SAT — than studying grammar. The only correlation to success on the SATs that researchers have determined is reading. Students who read a lot, which indicates that they read for fun, do well on all parts of the SAT.
   So here’s the bottom line: High school kids, spend some time with sensible SAT prep. As for my middle-school kids, pick up a good book and read for fun.
   Joan Ruddiman, Ed.D., is a teacher and friend of the Allentown Public Library.