Standardized Tests

SAT/ACT Prep

ACT / SAT / SATII

Why use a tutor?

Yes, your child can study for the ACT (or any test) solo. The ACT's website (www.actstudent.org) is a great resource that also offers online test prep. And, the ACT test prep book (“The Real ACT Prep Guide”) is well-written with great explanations. However, you might want to hire a tutor if:

your student can’t seem to make time to study for the test given work, school, activity, and social demands

it helps him or her study when accountable to a tutor

it’s tough for him to focus when he finally does sit down to study

she prefers (or actually learns better with) a live explanation rather than reading through the information

studying with a tutor will get him through the prep faster

she feels overwhelmed by the test prep book and needs a friendly person to get her through it

About the ACT

The ACT, like the SAT, is a college application exam accepted by most colleges (check with the schools). This test takes about four hours and is a collection of four multiple-choice tests on English, mathematics, reading, and science, plus an optional writing test ("ACT Plus Writing").

The 75 English questions measure grammar and usuage skills. The 60 math questions cover skills learned in classes usually taken through eleventh grade. There are 40 reading comprehension questions based on practical reading (recipes, instructions) and essays. The 40 science questions test the ability to understand scientific graphs and research. The optional writing prompt (30 minutes) measures high school writing skills needed for entry-level college composition courses. The ACT costs $29, plus $14 for the optional writing test. Visit ../www.actstudent.org/regist/actfees.html%20for%20current%20fees%20and%20other%20costs,%20such%20as%20standby%20testing.%20The%20test%20is%20given%20locally%20about%20a%20dozen%20times%20a%20calendar%20year.%20To%20register%20online,%20go%20to%20http%3A2F2Fwww.actstudent.org/regist/index.html. The dates through the 2007-2008 school year are: 2007: June 9, Sept 15, Oct 27, Dec 8 2008: Feb 9, April 12, June 14 Registration deadlines are about one month before the test, but check ../www.actstudent.org/regist/nextdates.html. Calculators The ACT allows basic calculators, although the math involves combinations of simple steps. For calculator rules, visit ../www.actstudent.org/faq/answers/calculator.html. Accommodations The ACT offers several accommodations for documented testing issues, from wheelchair access to large print tests to extended time. Due to the required documentation, you can not register online if you're requesting accommodations, so pay attention to the deadlines to allow mailing time. Also, because special arrangements must be made, standby is not an option for those needing accommodations. Visit ../www.act.org/aap/disab/index.html%20for%20more%20information.

About the SAT and SAT II

Clarity Learning's approach to ACT and standardized test prep: notes for students

Standardized tests explore what you know. Have you learned enough math and grammar to succeed in college (SAT/ACT)? Are you ready for a certain private high school (SSAT/ISEE), or even ready to leave high school (CHPSE, CHSEA)? What are your aptitudes for the military (ASVAB/SASVAB)? Do you qualify for a GED?

"Pay now or pay later"

These tests are one of those "pay now or pay later" life lessons. If you "got it" in school—if you did your homework, listened in class, and asked questions to fill in the gaps—the ACT will be pretty easy. The questions are arguably worded more simply than those in the SAT. The math and grammar are both fairly simple...IF you know what you're doing. However, if you invested your mental energy elsewhere (or, through no fault of your own simply could not learn the material), that lack of knowledge and/or effort will catch up with you now—a time when you suddenly WANT to look good for that college of your dreams. Therefore, test prep for a highly academic student who learned and retained the information in school will be a different experience than for someone who still struggles with the concepts.

Work with an "intent to learn" And the experience will be even harder for those students with a vague mathematical and grammatical knowledge who spend the review sessions saying, "Oh, yeah! Yeah, I get this. Oh, yeah I understand it" and then try to rush on to the next question. Anything you "kind of get" in a review session, you will "get" even less in the actual test situation. Again, it's "pay now or pay later." As you do your test review, take it seriously. Memorization and understanding happen when you "intend to learn." That means you're focused and actively trying and thinking and processing the material, not trying to escape the tutoring session. Accept that you'll need to rework the same problems a few times until the concepts sink in. Once you grasp a concept, you can quickly apply it to another problem. If you have focus issues, this will be tough, but we have faith that you're also very bright and truly capable of learning and performing well through your own common sense. The good news is that if you needed the review, test prep doubles as a thorough refresher of math, reading, and writing skills. Practicing this test will likely improve your grades at school because the concepts and methods are all building blocks to understanding math, reading, and writing.

Number of Sessions

The number of sessions depends on the student’s academic background, knowledge, and motivation/responsibility. Those who mastered the concepts may only need a few sessions to cover one section and become familiar with the test format. However, it's tougher for students who never applied themselves, never understood the math, don’t "get" formal grammar, have poor comprehension, and so on. They need more sessions to learn the material and the test presentation. Also, if you practice questions on your own (a.k.a. homework!), the tutor can more spend session time teaching and less time watching you work. That equals fewer sessions to accomplish the same thing. Otherwise, you'll do the practice in the session…with the tutor…requiring more sessions… (Our thought to parents: you might consider having the student pay for part of the tutoring cost, because the more practice he or she does independently, the fewer sessions we'll need to cover the test.)

Materials We believe that the best test preparation materials come from the test authors. The concepts on any tests may be the same, but how those concepts are worded in questions determine the difficulty of the test. We teach from "The Real ACT Prep Guide" ( ISBN-10: 0768919754; about $20 from a bookstore, possibly less online). We like this text because it offers three actual tests, writing tests, and answers and explanations. As a convenience, we can purchase the book and bill you for it.