Ace the SAT to get a college scholarship

Here's an interesting tidbit from a recent article in The New York Times about SAT test preparation...

"The economy may be in freefall, but one industry that continues to look promising is SAT test prep....
The worse the economy gets, and the more families look to scholarships to offset the insane cost of college, the more important it becomes to ace the SATs."

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Which SAT test should I take?

Here's the question and answer from the College Board Web site...

Which test should I take?

To find out which test(s) you should take, contact the colleges you are interested in attending or use our College Search to determine admissions requirements and deadlines. Most colleges require the SAT for admission and many other schools require both the SAT and Subject Tests for admissions purposes or placement. Additionally, some colleges require specific Subject Tests while others allow you to choose which tests you take. It's best to check directly with the college admissions offices.

If you're uncertain about your readiness to take a specific Subject Test, visit the Subject Test FAQ

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Can I retake the SAT? Can I send my highest SAT Score?

A parent asked me if her daughter could retake the SAT.
The answer is "Yes." See here for more information.
But it's a myth that you can send only your best scores.
College Board, which runs the SAT, will send all the scores it has on file.
Here is some information from the College Board site

• We send a cumulative report of all scores that are available and reportable at the time your request is received. You cannot send only your latest or highest SAT scores, or separate scores for critical reading, mathematics, or writing sections, or only SAT, or only Subject Test scores.
• Only score reports from completed and scored tests will be sent to the colleges and scholarship programs you select. Scores from future tests for which you registered, but have not yet completed, will not be included. Check your My SAT to see which scores are available to send.
• Your scores are maintained on active file for one year after your high school graduation, or for one school year following your test date if you tested after high school. Please see Archived Scores for more information if you last tested before October 2002.

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The Math section formulas

Don't forget that many formulas are right there in the front of the math section: the area of a circle, the circumference of a circle, etc. Even the 30-60-90 right triangle is right there, with formulas to determine the sides.
I have seen so many students forget about those formulas. It's like a legal cheat sheet. So turn to the first page of the math section whenever you need a formula you can't remember.
You won't see everything.
So remember your perfect right triangles:
3-4-5 6-8-10 9-12-15 etc.
5-12-13 10-24-25 15-36-39 etc.
7-24-25 14-48-50 21-72-75 etc.

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Books

So what books do I recommend?
You need to learn the tricks and practice, practice, practice by taking the tests.
You should get "Cracking the SAT" and "11 Practice Tests." There is a "Cracking the SAT" with a DVD.
The DVD is just some people going over various sections. It's somewhat helpful but not necessary. I listed it just in case you are interested.

Here are the must-have books from Amazon Canada followed by Amazon U.S.

Canadians








U.S. Residents








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The dreaded partial answer in the SAT math section

So you do all the work and you've solved for x. You fill in the answer. Then you check, and it's wrong. You go over your work again, and again!
"This stupid answer sheet is wrong!" you yell out.
Then you realize your mistake. The question asked, "What is x - 2?"
You answered "What is x?"
Whenever you read math questions, you should underline the key part of the question, such as "What is x-2?"
Then, when you complete your work, go back to the underlined words, and make sure you answer the question.
Getting x was a lot of work. Don't ruin it by not subtracting 2 to get the right answer.

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John McCain and Barack Obama can teach SAT students -- what not to say

If you are a student studying for the SAT and you're confused about grammar, you are not alone.
The presidential candidates made several mistakes in the debate last week.
I checked out the transcript of the debate and confirmed that I didn't hear them incorrectly.
Recognizing these errors can help SAT students on the grammar section.
I've also included a grammatical error by the transcribers who had a bad case of comma splice.

I'll start with a transcription error:

I like Meg Whitman [former CEO of eBay and current McCain campaign adviser], she knows what it's like to be out there in the marketplace.

The mistake. These are two sentences. "I like... " and "She knows...." They cannot be connected with a a comma. That's a comma splice.

How would you correct it? Use a period or semicolon instead of a comma.

I like Meg Whitman [former CEO of eBay and current McCain campaign adviser]. She knows what it's like to be out there in the marketplace.

OR

I like Meg Whitman [former CEO of eBay and current McCain campaign adviser]; she knows what it's like to be out there in the marketplace.


Another mistake:
McCain: "But you know, one of the real catalysts, really the match that lit this fire was Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac."

The error: The word "one" refers to two things: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. So you can't use the word "one." McCain should have used the word "two."
And she should have said "matches" and "were."

Obama: "The middle-class need a rescue package."
The error: "Class" is a singular noun. So the middle class "needs" a tax cut.

So if you're struggling with the grammar section, have faith. You can become a world leader some day.

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However...

Many of my students in the Vancouver area study hard for the grammar section of the SAT, however they miss the problem with this sentence.
So what's wrong with the above sentence?
It's called a comma splice -- two sentences joined by a comma.
Students study (subject verb)
they miss (subject verb)
You may counter that the two sentences are joined by "however."
But the word "however" is not a conjunction, so it cannot join two sentences.
If a student sees "however" in a sentence, the word should raise a red flag. He or she immediately should see if "however" connects two separate sentences.
The error can be fixed by joining the sentences with a semicolon or period.
Or the word "although" can be substituted for "however," as "although" is a conjunction.
Examples of the corrected sentence:
Many students study hard for the grammar section; however, they miss the problem with this sentence.
Many students study hard for the grammar section. However, they miss the problem with this sentence.
Many students study hard for the grammar section, although they miss the problem with this sentence.

Subject-Verb agreement

To get into a good university in the United States, students must ace the SAT. As a tutor for the SAT in the Vancouver, BC, area, I've written this blog to provide tips to students. For individual tutoring, please contact me.
Of all the problems in the writing section of the SAT, students have the most trouble with subject-verb agreement.
Making sure the subject and verb agree sounds like a simple task. But the SAT manages to complicate the matter.
SAT questions put words in between the subject and verb. So sometimes it isn't easy for students to determine the subject and verb.
Students often don't realize that only the conjunction "and" can make the subject into a compound subject.
The word "with" as well as the word "including" does not make the subject a compound subject.
And the previous sentence should also give you another tip: The phrase "as well as" doesn't make the subject a compound subject. So the subject of that sentence is "the word," which is singular, as in:
The word "with" does not make...
"Or" also confuses students studying for the SAT. Use the subject closest to the verb.

Correct Sentences

The players or the captain isn't ready to start the game. (subject closest to verb is captain)
The captain or the players aren't ready to start the game. (subject closest to verb is players)
The players and the captain aren't ready to start the game. (compound subject - joined by "and")
The players as well as the captain aren't ready to start the game. (subject is players)
The captain as well as the players isn't t ready to start the game. (subject is captain)