Wondering how to use your time wisely during a standardized test? These college admissions test experts offer advice:
- Jon M. Denning, director of operations, and Vicki Wood, SAT course developer for PowerScore Test Preparation in Hilton Head Island, S.C.
- Jake Neuberg, cofounder of Revolution Prep in Santa Monica, Calif.
- Linda Turner, senior editor of Barron’s Educational Series, Inc. in Hauppauge, N.Y.
Go prepared
Everyone agrees: Preparation is the best way to move steadily and carefully through the test. And it’s
imperative that those two words—steadily and carefully—go hand in hand.
By preparing for the test, says Turner, “students will know how much time they have to work on each problem or question.” This is particularly true of the ACT, which is a predictable test with the sections always tested in the same order.
(The SAT always varies its test sections.)
“Most students want to jump right in” and start a problem, adds Neuberg. “But the trickiness of the SAT makes that a dangerous shortcut.” This is especially true of the SAT math questions, which test basic math concepts in an
insidious way.
“The easiest way to increase your score,” says Neuberg, “is to take the extra few seconds to make sure you set up the problem correctly and then answer the question being asked.”
Take three passes
Denning and Wood advise students to “take three passes through each math and writing section.”
The first time through, answer the easy questions. The second time, answer everything but the really hard ones. The third and last time, try working on those tough ones.
They recommend not working through the questions strictly in the order presented. That could get you stuck, make you run out of time, or mean you
forfeit easier points.
Focus on what you know
Neuberg agrees that you shouldn’t
belabor a question. “Focus on what you know rather than what you don’t know. If students don’t know exactly how to solve a question, but they get started with what they do know, they will find that they can actually figure out the problem right there.
“If a student can’t even get started, then it is best to eliminate one or more wrong answer choices, make an educated guess and move on to the next question. It is important not to obsess over any one question; that single question will not have a huge impact on your score. But if you let it become a distraction, you will get the next few questions wrong as well, and that will obviously have a much larger negative impact,” Neuberg says.
Be a smart guesser
Answer every question on the ACT as best you can, because points aren’t taken away for wrong answers on that exam.
“Educated guessing will work on the SAT as well,” says Turner. “Although incorrect answers get a quarter-point deduction
(unanswered questions are not scored), on average you gain far more than you lose. If you can eliminate one or more choices, guess.”
After making an educated guess, move on. Don’t
ruminate over the same problem; let it go.
Use active reading
“You have two to four minutes to read a long passage,” say Denning and Wood. “You should use active reading when dealing with a difficult passage. Active reading occurs when you ask questions about the passage or paraphrase particular sentences as you read. Because some passages are so dense and difficult to understand, it is important to stop and summarize the main idea of each paragraph. Some students also find it helpful to quickly notate a three- or four-word summary in the margin of the test booklet.”
Follow these tips to ensure standardized test success!
Word challenge
The following
BOLD words appear in this article. Try matching the words to their meanings.
1. belabor a. to go over repeatedly
2. forfeit b. sneaky
3. imperative c. to ponder
4. insidious d. absolutely necessary
5. ruminate e. to give up
Answers: (1) a (2) e (3) d (4) b (5) c
This article is provided by The Next Step Magazine (nextSTEPmag.com), a publication that helps students prepare for life after high school.