Time Management and the ACT

College bound students are often looking for a competitive advantage because it's SO competitive at selective schools. Consequently, many students have started to turn to the ACT when their SAT scores fall short of their expectations. While parent and student gossip circles would have you believe the ACT is "easier" than the SAT, this notion is ridiculous for two reasons. One, if the ACT was easier than the SAT, colleges would no longer consider either the ACT or SAT for admission. Two, if students consistently did better on the ACT, the distribution curve would correct any potential discrepancy. It's that simple.

So, what is the biggest difference between the SAT and ACT? Time management. The ACT is a much faster test, especially the Science Reasoning section. Under-prepared students (or students with bad test taking habits) run out of time.

Best SAT Test Date

"My counselor told me to take the SAT in March of my Junior year." If I hear another counselor argue that the March SAT is the best test date for all students, I'll scream . Why March? After one semester of Pre-Calculus are you better prepared for questions about integers? Probably, the opposite. Is it better to start SAT prep during the winter holidays? Is it easier to manage 3 AP classes, high school soccer, and SAT prep in the months before the March test?

We encourage our students to begin prep in the Summer before 11th grade. Although practice test scores will largely dictate when a student is ready to take a live exam, we generally target the November or December SAT. This provides our students with three major advantages. One, our students experience less stress because the bulk of prep takes place during the Summer. This means a few less hours on the beach, of course. Two, high scoring students increase their chances of earning a National Merit Scholarship on the PSAT in October. Three, our students can focus on extracurriculars in the second part of 11th grade.

So, as you pick the right SAT test date, evaluate the months leading up to the test. Will you be playing a sport? Will you be in the school play? Is your family vacationing for 3 weeks? Only YOU can pick the best test date.

Why TOO many SAT students fall short

To reiterate an old saying, we learn from our mistakes. Simple statement, right? Wrong. In my 7 years as a professional academic coach, I've learned that many students fall short--whether in a class or on a test--because they never try to learn from their mistakes.

Here is a typical SAT student example.
Cindy is preparing for the May SAT during her junior year. Her parents were organized and hired an expert SAT Coach from Hammer Tutoring to start in January (they called in September to reserve a spot!). At the end of the first session, Cindy's Coach assigns 20 practice math questions due the following meeting. Cindy waits until the night before to complete the assignment (probably took 30 minutes) and quickly scores it. At the beginning of the next session, her Coach asks if she studied her mistakes. Cindy responds,"that she didn't have time". Consequently, Cindy and her SAT Coach, work through her missed questions. She is surprised at HOW easy the questions were to solve with some help.

On the next practice assignment, Cindy completes it the night before. She corrects 2 of the 10 problems she missed. Again, Cindy and her Coach review the missed questions. Again, she can't believe how simple the questions are to solve.

Despite constant reminders from her SAT Coach, Cindy continues to practice this way--after all, it's habit. Finally, she begins taking practice SATs. Cindy, sets aside 3.5 hours to complete the test, scores it, and places it aside for review. All of the sudden it's Tuesday, the day of her SAT appointment. Guess what? She hasn't studied her test; she hasn't learned from her mistakes.

She sits down with her Coach and realizes she had made many reckless mistakes. Throughout the session Cindy barks, "Oh my gosh", "I can't believe I did that", "That was so easy", and so on.

What does this all add up to? Cindy eventually improves her SAT score because of practice; however, Cindy doesn't enjoy the massive point gains she is capable of because she doesn't understand why she misses questions. She just realizes that many SAT questions are simple when an SAT Coach guides her. She is unaware of the reasons she falls short.

If you're serious about HUGE point gains, here is how you should practice:

• Just as you set aside time to complete an assignment, set aside an equal amount of time to study your mistakes.
• Summarize why you've missed questions and HOW you could avoid similar mistakes in the future. It won't help you to just say that you've misread a question. Figure out why you've missed some details. Did you not spend enough time thinking about specific concepts mentioned? Did you try to classify the question?
  
• Finally, if you really don't think you can solve a question, rewrite it in your own words. This may be all you need to organize the information.

All problems are meant to be solved. Some questions just take more time and dedication to answer. Good Luck!