The sat in exam 4 pps

SAT at a Glance There are three sections on the SAT: Critical Reading, Writing, and Math. Critical Reading ➧ Three question types: reading comprehension (long passages) paragraph-length critical reading (short passages) sentence completion ➧ 70 minutes long, divided into three sections (two 25-minute sections and one 20-minute section) ➧ All questions are multiple-choice. Writing ➧ Three sections: essay (25 minutes) multiple choice (25 minutes) multiple choice (10 minutes) ➧ Three multiple-choice question types: identifying sentence errors improving sentences improving paragraphs ➧ Multiple-choice questions cover grammar, usage, and basic writing and revising strategies. ➧ The essay topic is general enough so that anyone can write about it well. Math ➧ Two question types: five-choice (about 80%) grid-ins (student-produced responses, about 20%) ➧ 70 minutes long, divided into three sections (two 25-minute sections and one 20-minute section) ➧ Mathematical concepts include: arithmetic algebra I and II geometry statistics The exam takes approximately three hours and forty-five minutes to complete, plus additional time for breaks and filling out forms. 7 5658 SAT2006[01](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:41 PM Page 7 be careful about how you mark your answer sheet. The computer doesn’t know what you meant to mark; it only sees what marks are on the sheet. For the multiple-choice questions, the computer counts the number of correct answers and gives one point for each. Then, it counts your incorrect answers and deducts one-quarter point for each from the total of your correct answers. If the score that results from the subtraction is a fraction of a point, your score is rounded to the nearest whole number. However, no point or fraction of a point is subtracted for incorrect answers to the grid-in questions. Your essay will be scored by two trained high school or college instructors. (You will learn more about how these readers score the essay in Chapter 5.) The raw score for the essay ranges from 0–12 points. (Each reader rates the essay 0–6, 6 being the highest score.) Essays are scored holistically, meaning readers assess the overall effectiveness of the essay. This means that essays with minor grammar and spelling mistakes can still earn a top score. Your raw score for each section (critical reading, writing, and math) is then converted to a scaled score, using the statistical process of equating. For each sec- tion of the test, the scaled score will be somewhere between 200 and 800, 800 being the highest score. That means your combined critical reading, writing, and math scores will be between 600 and a perfect score of 2,400. Score Reporting The College Board will send you a report on your scores. They will also send your scores to the schools (up to four) you request on your application. Colleges are used to seeing these reports, but they can be con- fusing to everybody else. Here’s how you look at them: You will see your scaled scores on the Critical Read- ing, Math, and Writing sections, in a column titled Score. You will also see your subscores for each part of the Writing section: a score from 0–12 on the essay and 20–80 on the multiple-choice portion. Then, you will see columns titled Score Range and Percentiles College- Bound Seniors. The information in these columns can be useful in your preparations for college. Score Range The College Board realizes that due to variations among versions of the SAT and due to the normal ups and downs of life, your score on any particular test on any particular day reflects your placement within a range of test scores. Experience tells them that if you retake the exam without further preparation, you are unlikely to move up or down more than thirty points on the critical reading, math, or writing portion. When you see your test results, therefore, you will see that, immediately following your total scaled score for each section, there is a score range, which is a 60-point spread. Your actual scaled score will fall right in the middle of this range. You can think of this range as representing the same kind of hedging done by poll- sters, who report the result of an opinion poll with a built-in margin of error. For example, 58% of high school seniors attend their senior prom. An important aspect of your score range is that the test-makers believe you are just as likely to receive a lower score when retaking the SAT as you are to receive a higher score. Fortunately for you, that is true only if you do no further preparation for the test. So, if you have already taken the SAT and have bought this book to help you improve your score next time, you are on the right track. If you have yet to take the SAT and have bought this book to help you score better your first time around, congratulations on thinking ahead! Percentile Your score report will also include two percentile rank- ings. The first ranking measures your SAT scores against those of all students who took the test nation- wide. The second ranking measures your scores against only the students in your state who took the test. The higher your percentile ranking, the better. For example, if you receive a 65 in the national category and –INTRODUCTION TO THE SAT– 8 5658 SAT2006[01](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:41 PM Page 8 a 67 in the state category, that means your scores were better than 65% of students nationwide and better than 67% in your state. In other words, of every 100 students who took the test in your state, you scored higher than 67 of them. Additional Score Information Along with information about your scaled score, the College Board also includes information about your raw score. You can see how well you did on each type of critical reading, math, and writing question—how many you answered correctly, how many incorrectly, and how many you left blank. You can use this infor- mation to determine whether you could improve on a particular type of question. If you have already taken the SAT, use this information to see where you need to concentrate in your preparations. You will also receive information about the col- leges or universities to which you have asked the Col- lege Board to report your scores. This information will include typical SAT scores of students at these schools as well as other admission policies and finan- cial information. Please remember that when you look at SAT scores for a particular campus, the scores are not the only criterion for admission to or success. They are part of an application package. On your SAT report, you will see the score range for the middle 50% of freshmen at each school. When you look at that range, remember it means that 25% of the freshmen scored higher than that range and 25% scored below. Just because your score falls below that range for a partic- ular school, don’t think admissions officers won’t be interested in you. One-fourth of their freshman class scored below that range. Nevertheless, you obviously know that admission to the most desirable schools can be fiercely competitive. That’s why it’s important to prepare thoroughly—with the help of this book—to earn the highest score you can on the SAT. –INTRODUCTION TO THE SAT– 9 4 Steps to Scoring the SAT For multiple-choice questions: 1. Right answers are added—1 point for each correct answer. 2. Wrong answers are subtracted— ᎏ 1 4 ᎏ point for each wrong answer. 3. Raw score is calculated—right answers minus wrong answers—and rounded to the nearest whole number. For grid-in questions: 1. Right answers are added—1 point for each correct answer. 2. Wrong answers receive zero points—no points are subtracted. 3. Raw score—the total number of correct answers—is calculated and rounded to the nearest whole number. For the essay question: 1. Your essay is scored by two expert readers who each assign it a score from 0–6. 2. Raw score—from 2–12—is calculated by adding the two scores. For the entire exam: 1. Raw scores are converted to scaled scores, using the ETS equating process. 5658 SAT2006[01](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:41 PM Page 9  Preparing for the SAT in General You have already taken one of the most important steps in preparing for the SAT: You are reading this book. If you were traveling to a foreign land, it would be wise to learn all you could about the country’s culture, so you’d know what to expect when you got there. The SAT has its own culture. It is not like any other tests you have taken, with the exception of the PSAT/NMSQT, which is also prepared by the Educational Testing Service. Therefore, you are smart to learn all you can about this very distinctive exam and to practice taking it. This book will teach you about the culture of the exam and how to study for it. What Other Books Do I Need? This book is based on a careful and extensive analysis of the SAT. It contains the information you need to prepare for and succeed on the exam. In addition, this book offers you practical suggestions for organizing your time in the weeks and months leading up to the test. There are five books that can be useful supple- ments to this one. LearningExpress publishes Vocabu- lary and Spelling Success in 20 Minutes a Day and 1001 Vocabulary and Spelling Questions. Because vocabulary is one of the topics tested on the SAT, it is essential for you to develop a strong vocabulary. Write Better Essays in Just 20 Minutes a Day, SAT Writing Essentials, and other LearningExpress titles will help you prepare for the Writing section. Practical Math Success in 20 Min- utes a Day, SAT Math Essentials, and 1001 Math Ques- tions will prepare you for the Math section. It is important that you practice with these real questions. Many students fail to achieve their maxi- mum score because they are thrown off balance by the distinctive style of the questions. It is necessary for you to familiarize yourself with the ETS style before test day. Playing Catch-Up? Have you started to worry that maybe you should have paid more attention in algebra class? That maybe you should have followed your teacher’s advice and looked up unfamiliar words in the dictionary? Are you worried about having to write an essay under timed condi- tions? In Chapter 2 of this book, you will find detailed strategies for controlling test anxiety. Right now, let’s just say that regret is a waste of energy in this case. It’s important to remember that you are paying attention now. When you focus on preparing for the SAT, you can achieve your goal of a strong score. Been There, Done That? Have you already taken the SAT? If so, you must not have been satisfied with the results. Good. You can do better. You already have the information about where you need to improve (see “Additional Score Informa- tion” on page 10). This book has tips and strategies for you, as well as the key information you need about any changes that have been made to the exam since the last time you took it. Obviously, you have made the com- mitment to prepare for your retest, which means you’re on the road to significantly improving your score. Overview of This Book The next chapter discusses how to approach your preparation process. You will learn how to study and what to study. Then, you will learn about stress and how to reduce it, as well as some general test-taking strategies. Chapter 3 is an extensive breakdown of the SAT’s Critical Reading section. You will learn all about the three types of critical reading questions. You will prac- tice those questions and learn strategies for eliminating wrong answers and choosing right ones. Also, you will diagnose your strengths and weaknesses and come up with a plan for boosting your critical reading score. –INTRODUCTION TO THE SAT– 10 5658 SAT2006[01](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:41 PM Page 10 In Chapter 4, you will learn about the two types of math questions on the SAT and what kinds of skills you need to answer them successfully. Here, you will find useful strategies, practice opportunities, and employ diagnostic tools that will enable you to come up with a personalized study plan. Chapter 5 explains the Writing section of the SAT. You will learn about the different types of multiple- choice questions, as well as how to tackle the essay por- tion. This chapter includes many helpful practice ques- tions and also contains detailed information about how the essay is scored, with strategies for writing within a time limit. Are you ready? It’s time to get started! –INTRODUCTION TO THE SAT– 11 5658 SAT2006[01](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:41 PM Page 11 5658 SAT2006[01](fin).qx 11/21/05 6:41 PM Page 12 . against only the students in your state who took the test. The higher your percentile ranking, the better. For example, if you receive a 65 in the national category and –INTRODUCTION TO THE SAT 8 5658 SAT2 006[01](fin).qx. adding the two scores. For the entire exam: 1. Raw scores are converted to scaled scores, using the ETS equating process. 5658 SAT2 006[01](fin).qx 11/21/05 6 :41 PM Page 9  Preparing for the SAT. thoroughly—with the help of this book—to earn the highest score you can on the SAT. –INTRODUCTION TO THE SAT 9 4 Steps to Scoring the SAT For multiple-choice questions: 1. Right answers are added—1 point