at the diner, like all the other kids at school do. I knew if I told my parents, they would be mad, and they would make her quit. That would be better for her health. Another part of me thought it was none of my business, and I shouldn’t tell. Its my sister’s own decision to smoke, and if she wants to ruin her life, thats her problem. Besides, we have a close rela- tionship, and if I told on her, she wouldn’t trust me anymore. I thought it would be really hard if my sis- ter stopped telling me things. In the end, my dilemma was solved because my aunt drove by the school one day and saw my sis- ter smoking. She told my parents, and my sister was grounded for a month. So she stopped smok- ing, and she never knew that I saw her by the school, which was good for me since I didn’t have to tell on her. In life it is difficult when you face hard choices, especially when it comes to your family. Sometimes you have to make a choice, but other times life makes the choice for you. Scoring Explanation The writer of this essay demonstrates a basic under- standing of the question, but does not develop her argument fully. The writing is simplistic and lacks organization. The writer describes the problem she faced when she saw her sister smoking, and describes two potential outcomes, but then goes on to say that she never actually had to make the decision whether to tell her parents. The introduction and conclusion are weak, and the essay contains errors in spelling, punctuation, and grammar. Overall, this essay shows marginal writ- ing ability. Sample 2-point Response Life is really hard sometimes. It seems like every day I need to make a big decision about what I am going to do with my life, and its the same with my friends. They say high school is the best time in your life, but I disagree. High school is full of risks and dilemmas. For example, what if you don’t take honors classes. What if you want to just take regular math and english and all that. That decision can really change your life, especially if you want to go to colege. My parents are mad at me because they say I had to try harder in school. There are also soshal problems. You might not think it is a big dilemma about who you go out with, who you hang out with, etc, but it is. Those choices have a affect on how people see you, and can maybe change your life. For example my cousin had these really bad friends, they influence her badly, and now she dropped out of high school. For myself, I have good friends and I think I am lucky. But what if I made the wrong choice, that would be really bad. Teachers have choices too. My old history teacher Ms. Green decided to go and get her phd but now my dad says she can’t get a good job, she might as well have stayed teaching high school. High school is a very tricky time for everyone, students and teachers. Maybe if everyone had to get jobs in high school they would be more respon- sible and wouldn’t have to make so many decisions. Scoring Explanation This student demonstrates a very limited understand- ing of the assignment. Instead of focusing on one dilemma he faced and providing examples of how it affected his life, he offers several disconnected state- ments about the difficulties of high school. The third body paragraph, about teachers, does not fit in with the rest of the essay, and the conclusion introduces a new idea about students getting jobs in high school. There is little evidence of an organization plan. In addition, there are numerous spelling, grammar, and usage errors that make the writing difficult to follow. –THE SAT WRITING SECTION– 252 5658 SAT2006[05](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:45 PM Page 252 Sample 1-point Response A dilemma is when someone don’t know what to do. Sometimes there are risks too and this can make the dilemma harder. My dad never knows what to do, he take forever to decide something and in the meantime nothing happens. My mom says hes nerv- ous to make the wrong choice but I think that is stu- pid. You ask him a question it takes like an hour for him to anser. His head in the clouds. I want to take more risks than my dad. For example, I tryed out for cross contry even though I didn’t know if I was fast. It was a big dilema for me. Scoring Explanation This writer shows no understanding of the question. Although she refers to the issue mentioned in the prompt, her essay is off-topic and hard to follow. Instead of talking about her own dilemmas, she ram- bles about her father and then switches to an example about trying out for the cross-country team. There is no organizational plan or development, and she provides no support for her examples. The numerous mechan- ical errors make the essay very difficult to read. This essay shows incompetence in writing. –THE SAT WRITING SECTION– 253 5658 SAT2006[05](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:45 PM Page 253 5658 SAT2006[05](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:45 PM Page 254 Base—a number used as a repeated factor in an exponential expression. In 8 5 , 8 is the base number. Base 10—see Decimal. Binary system—one of the simplest numbering systems. The base of the binary system is 2, which means that only the digits 0 and 1 can appear in a binary representation of any number. Circumference—the distance around the outside of a circle. Composite number—any integer that can be divided evenly by a number other than itself and 1. All num- bers are either prime or composite. Counting numbers—include all whole numbers, with the exception of 0. Decimal—a number in the base 10 number system. Each place value in a decimal number is worth ten times the place value of the digit to its right. Denominator—the bottom number in a fraction. The denominator of ᎏ 1 2 ᎏ is 2. Diameter—a chord that passes through the center of the circle and has endpoints on the circle. Difference—the result of subtracting one number from another. Divisible by—capable of being evenly divided by a given number, without a remainder. Dividend—the number in a division problem that is being divided. In 32 ÷ 4 = 8, 32 is the dividend. Even number—a counting number that is divisible by 2. Expanded notation—a method of writing numbers as the sum of their units (hundreds, tens, ones, etc.). The expanded notation for 378 is 300 + 70 + 8. APPENDIX Math Glossary A 255 5658 SAT2006[Ap](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:46 PM Page 255 Exponent—a number that indicates an operation of repeated multiplication. For instance, 3 4 indicates that the number 3 should be multiplied by itself 4 times. Factor—one of two or more numbers or variables that are being multiplied together. Fractal—a geometric figure that is self-similar; that is, any smaller piece of the figure will have roughly the same shape as the whole. Improper fraction—a fraction whose numerator is the same size as or larger than its denominator. Improper fractions are equal to or greater than 1. Integer—all of the whole numbers and negatives too. Examples are −3, −2, −1, 0, 1, 2, and 3. Note that inte- gers do not include fractions or decimals. Multiple of—a multiple of a number has that number as one of its factors; 35 is a multiple of 7; it is also a multiple of 5. Negative number—a real number whose value is less than zero. Numerator—the top number in a fraction. The numerator of ᎏ 1 4 ᎏ is 1. Odd number—a counting number that is not divisible by 2. Percent—a ratio or fraction whose denominator is assumed to be 100, expressed using the % sign; 98% is equal to ᎏ 1 9 0 8 0 ᎏ . Perimeter—the distance around the outside of a polygon. Polygon—a closed two-dimensional shape made up of several line segments that are joined together. Positive number—a real number whose value is greater than zero. Prime number—a real number that is divisible by only two positive factors: 1 and itself. Product—the result when two numbers are multiplied together. Proper fraction—a fraction whose denominator is larger than its numerator. Proper fractions are equal to less than 1. Proportion—a relationship between two equivalent sets of fractions in the form ᎏ a b ᎏ = ᎏ d c ᎏ . Quotient—the result when one number is divided into another. Radical—the symbol used to signify a root operation. Radius—any line segment from the center of the circle to a point on the circle. The radius of a circle is equal to half its diameter. Ratio—the relationship between two things, expressed as a proportion. Real numbers—include fractions and decimals in addition to integers. Reciprocal—one of two numbers which, when multiplied together, give a product of 1. For instance, since ᎏ 3 2 ᎏ × ᎏ 2 3 ᎏ is equal to 1, ᎏ 3 2 ᎏ is the reciprocal of ᎏ 2 3 ᎏ . Remainder—the amount left over after a division problem using whole numbers. Divisible numbers always have a remainder of zero. Root (square root)—one of two (or more) equal factors of a number. The square root of 36 is 6, because 6 × 6 = 36. The cube root of 27 is 3 because 3 × 3 × 3 = 27. Simplify terms—to combine like terms and reduce an equation to its most basic form. Variable—a letter, often x, used to represent an unknown number value in a problem. Whole numbers—0, 1, 2, 3, and so on. They do not include negatives, fractions, or decimals. –MATH GLOSSARY– 256 5658 SAT2006[Ap](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:46 PM Page 256 Mathematics Downing, Douglas. Algebra the Easy Way (Hauppauge, NY: Barron’s Educational Series, 2003). Kaplan New SAT Math Workbook (New York: Kaplan, 2004). Math Builder: An Excellent Review for Standardized Tests (Piscataway, NJ: 2004). No Fear Algebra (New York: Spark Notes, 2004). Oernese, Richard and David Smith. SAT Math Essentials (New York: LearningExpress, 2006). Peterson’s Math Exercises for the SAT (Lawrenceville, NY: Peterson’s, 2001). Prindle, Anthony. Barron’s Math the Easy Way (Hauppauge, NY: Barron’s Educational Series, 2003). Reading Comprehension and Writing Hacker, Diana. A Writer’s Reference, 5th ed. (New York: Bedford Books, 2003). Jones, Darolyn. Painless Reading Comprehension (Hauppauge, NY: Barron’s Educational Series, 2004). McCutcheon, Randall et al. Increase Your Score in 3 Minutes a Day: SAT Critical Reading (New York: McGraw Hill, 2004). Morgan, Margaret. Peterson’s New SAT Writing Workbook (Lawrenceville, NJ: Peterson’s, 2004). Pivarnik-Nova, Denise. 400 Essential SAT Words (New York: McGraw-Hill, 2004). Reinhart, Susan M. Testing Your Grammar (Ann Harbor, MI: University of Michigan Press, 2002). APPENDIX Additional Resources B 257 5658 SAT2006[Ap](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:46 PM Page 257 . root)—one of two (or more) equal factors of a number. The square root of 36 is 6, because 6 × 6 = 36 . The cube root of 27 is 3 because 3 × 3 × 3 = 27. Simplify terms—to combine like terms and reduce. numbers which, when multiplied together, give a product of 1. For instance, since ᎏ 3 2 ᎏ × ᎏ 2 3 ᎏ is equal to 1, ᎏ 3 2 ᎏ is the reciprocal of ᎏ 2 3 ᎏ . Remainder the amount left over after a division. mechan- ical errors make the essay very difficult to read. This essay shows incompetence in writing. THE SAT WRITING SECTION– 2 53 5658 SAT2 006[05](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:45 PM Page 2 53 5658 SAT2 006[05](fin).qx