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As winter is winding down and spring is approaching, the
big test that every high school student dreams of taking
is on the way…if only that were true. That test--you
guessed it-- the SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) is no walk
in the park. However, the SAT coming this spring has undergone
an extreme makeover. Juniors graduating in 2006 will be
the first class to face this new challenge.
The
new SAT has several distinct modifications. Probably the
most unpopular change in the test is the lengthening of
the exam by a half-hour. The time of the test has been extended
due to the addition of a thirty-minute student written essay.
After
being given a quote to base your essay upon, you’ll
be expected to take a position and support it with examples
from your personal experiences and from your studies.
Another aspect of the test, which may in fact be the best
part of the new SAT, is in the writing section. They have
replaced the analogies (somnolent is to wakeful as graceful
is to clumsy) with short critical reading passages, which
make up 30 percent of the writing section, and new multiple-choice
grammar questions, which make up 70 percent.
In
the math section, quantitative-comparison questions, which
used to count for 25 percent of the math score, have also
been dropped. Algebra II and geometry equations have been
added. Concepts like function notation and exponential growth
will be introduced, and there will be more emphasis on graphs
and interpreting visual data. Now while algebra II and geometry
math subjects are more difficult (remember negative exponents?),
these questions only account for ten percent of the total
math section.
The
perfect score for the new SAT will be 2400 rather than the
1600 it was with the old test. Another change in the new
SAT is the price. The cost will run students between $36
and $38 rather than $24 for the old SAT. The next SAT will
be given May 7, 2005.
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