The Princeton Review SAT vs. ACT

1. The Princeton Review SAT vs. ACT

2. Introductions Presenter: Jennifer Anderson JAnderson@review.com 1-800-2Review x5748 www.PrincetonReview.com

3. Who We Are • The Princeton Review helps students at every stage of their educational careers. • Classroom courses in 41 states and 21 countries. • Private and Small Group Tutoring programs and IN-School preparation programs. • We provide PSAT, SAT, SAT subject tests, ACT, AP subject, GMAT, GRE, LSAT, MCAT, USMLE, and TOEFL preparation. • We publish a series of test preparation books, including the best-selling Cracking the SAT. • New software technologies such as handhelds, iPhone applications and podcasts.

4. Everything You Need to Know About the SAT and ACT

5. What do SAT and ACT Scores Really Measure?

6. How well you take the SAT and ACT! • Don’t take scores personally. • Scores are NOT a measure of intelligence. • Anybody, with the proper coaching, can learn how to increase their scores.

7. Tests at a Glance

8. Tests at a Glance

9. SAT Scoring • Each section (Math, Reading and Writing) is scored on a scale of 200-800. • The mean is around 500 for each section. • The Writing score is a combination of Grammar (20-80) and Essay (2-12). • The Grammar makes up about 70% of your Writing Score.

10. SAT Scoring • Each correct answer earns 1 full point, regardless of level of difficulty. • Each unanswered question earns a student 0 points. • Each incorrect answer to a Student-ProducedResponse question earns a student 0 points. • Students lose 1/4 point for each incorrect answer to a multiple-choice question.

11. ACT Scoring • Each section (Math, Reading, English and Science Reasoning) receives an individual score from 1-36. • The four scores are averaged into your Composite Score (1-36). • There is no penalty for wrong answers. Do not leave anything blank! Use a “letter of the day”. • English + Writing = 2/3 English + 1/3 Writing.

12. SAT Math • Not difficult math. Everything you need to know for SAT math you’ve learned by the end of your sophomore year! • Questions in all math sections of the SAT will be in order of difficulty. The first third will be easy, the middle third will be medium difficulty, and the final third will be hard. • Keep in mind that easy questions will have easy answers. Difficult questions will have difficult answers. • Knowing the order of difficulty in a test section helps you significantly when eliminating answer choices and determining your testing strategy.

13. ACT Math • All the usual suspects are here: Geometry, Algebra, Arithmetic. • The ACT also includes 4 Trigonometry questions. • Don’t let it scare you - SOHCAHTOA is all you need. • The real scary part of the ACT is 60 multiple choice questions; 60 minutes – that’s 1 minute per question!

14. Why Students Struggle with Standardized Tests

15. This IS Covering Standardized Tests The SAT and ACT: Who Knew? • ACT: score fluctuation is about 2.2 points (6% of the total). • SAT: score fluctuation is about 30 points (3.75% of the total). • Cut-off scores for college admissions mean that 2/30 points can be significant. • Supposed to be indicators of freshman-year success • Males score an average of 42 points higher on the SAT; Females have higher first-year college grades. • Both tests are strongly correlated to family income levels. • Could be used inappropriately for financial aid decisions, scholarship criteria, and NCAA athletics participation.

16. Basic Strategies Practice Makes Perfect • Students should take numerous practice tests! • Students should not under any circumstances take the tests for the first time when it counts towards their admissions! • By taking several practice exams, students: • Increase theirconfidence& decrease test anxiety by becoming familiar with the test • Increase their overall speed and accuracy • Study practice test results Page 16

17. Basic Strategies • Use POE: Process of Elimination • Get in the habit of placing a line through the answers you know are wrong in the test booklet! • Don’t look for right answers; look for wrong ones and get rid of them! Page 17

18. Process of Elimination What is the capital of Malawi?

19. Process of Elimination What is the capital of Malawi? • Washington, D.C. • Paris • Tokyo • London • Lilongwe On the ACT, you want to use POE on all questions, but when you run out of time at the end of a section, pick a letter of the day and GUESS! Don’t do it on the SAT! Use POE to help you narrow your choices, but don’t be afraid to leave questions blank!

20. The Answer Choices • The test writers are at their best when writing answer choices they know will lure you in! • How do they know which choices you’ll like/not like? • Students showed them in past experimental sections. • People are PREDICTABLE!

21. Say Hello to Joe Meet Joe Bloggs! Test writers spend a lot of money getting to know JOE!

22. Joe Knows Let’s see Joe in Action: If I say Peanut Butter, you say…. If I say Boy, you say… If I say Left, you say…

23. We know Joe! • There is a little bit of Joe in all of us • The answer choices on the tests are written for JOE! • Learn how Joe approaches the test, and you’ll know what NOT to do!

24. Joe Knows Math! 18. In the figure below, what is the GREATEST number of nonoverlapping regions into which the shaded region can be divided with exactly two straight lines? A. 6 B. 5 C. 4 D. 3 E. 2

25. SAT Math 18. In the figure below, what is the GREATEST number of nonoverlapping regions into which the shaded region can be divided with exactly two straight lines? A. 6 B. 5 C. 4 D. 3 E. 2

26. SAT Math 18. In the figure below, what is the GREATEST number of nonoverlapping regions into which the shaded region can be divided with exactly two straight lines? A. 6 B. 5 D. 3 E. 2

27. SAT Math 18. In the figure below, what is the GREATEST number of nonoverlapping regions into which the shaded region can be divided with exactly two straight lines? A. 6 B. 5

28. SAT Math 18. In the figure below, what is the GREATEST number of nonoverlapping regions into which the shaded region can be divided with exactly two straight lines? B. 5 2 3 1 4 5

29. Passage-Based Reading • These are little, open-book tests. Make sure you go back to the passage and come up with your own answer before looking at the answer choices. • On long passages, the questions will appear chronologically. Speed up your search for an answer by knowing where to look!

30. ACT Science Reasoning Think of it as Technical Reading – you don’t need to be a science whiz! • Basic understanding of the scientific method will help you out. • Not much science knowledge is needed. • Reading and understanding charts and graphs. There are 3 types of science questions: • Charts and Graphs: consists only of charts and graphs. • Experiments: combination of reading text and charts and graphs in the same question. • Fighting Scientists: much like the reading section, only reading text, no charts and graphs. This is a GREAT section to work out of order. Usually students find charts and graphs easiest of the questions. Do those first!

31. SAT Writing/ACT English Don’t believe your ears. Memorize the rules. In the year 1492, Columbus discovered the New World even though he was actually trying to reach India.

32. SAT Writing/ACT English What about this one? Don’t forget not to trust your ears! Each night, the majority of people goes hungry. Don’t be afraid to pick No Error!

33. The Essays How long do you think SAT and/or ACT graders take to grade essays?

34. No Joke! Essays are graded in approximately 60 seconds

35. The Essays The biggest difference between the essays – the question content!

36. Essays – First Impressions Count Using the graders to your advantage: • Length counts. Use those lines • Think before you write! • Neatness will count • Answer the question • Conclusion • Triumph of style over substance • Keep it simple • If you can’t spell it, don’t use it

37. Let TPR Be Your Guide | 800-2Review | PrincetonReview.com Questions? Page 37