By Omer Qureshi
Phlegmatic. Lachrymose. Contumacious. These are words that students no longer need to memorize for a single test.
The College Board, a non-profit standardized test producer, is rolling out a revised version of the Scholastic Aptitude Test starting in March of 2016. It is an effort to make the test more student-friendly according to The College Board. The new SAT has a variety of revisions meant to help students and keep the test relevant to advances in education.
Jean Good, a counselor at Hershey High School, believes that it is too early to tell how students can prepare for the new SAT. Since there has not been a graded test yet she recommends students continue preparing with the current practice material.
“We can’t really say how student should prepare since we have not received any results from the new test,” Good said. She also believes that the changes should help improve students’ performance on the test.
Arguably the most beneficial change for students taking the test is the complete removal of a guessing penalty on the new SAT. Currently, for every wrong answer a student will receive a 1/4 point guessing penalty which discouraged guessing.
Along with this, there will be a smaller pool of answers for test questions. Currently, there are five answers selections per multiple choice question; however, on the new SAT there will only be four options per questions.
One of the most prominent adjustments to the new SAT is the essay portion of the test, which is now optional. While most top-tier colleges will still require an essay, a student who does not need to submit an essay can focus on the Math and Reading sections of the test and prepare more selectively for the test.
Derek Dietz, an HHS English teacher, teaches many students through an Academic Literacy class and has helped them with test preparation.
One of Dietz’s biggest tips for students is to not buy anything for test prep. Dietz said, “Everything a student needs to prepare themselves for the SAT can be found online for free.”
Shifting test preparation also introduces a shifted scoring system of the new SAT, which will be radically different to the current test. The scoring system is being scaled back to 400 – 1600 points, which reflects the SAT from pre-2005 and reflects the simplified nature of the test.
Another major change is the lack of complex vocabulary, dubbed “SAT words.” The vocabulary of the new SAT has been revised and will be focused more on words in context rather than difficult vocabulary. The revision is attempting to remove the emphasis on memorization and instead placing it on contextual analysis and application of prior knowledge.
All in all the new SAT is shaping up to radically shift the status quo of standardized test. The changes, positive and negative, will make waves that will be seen starting in March.
