By reading our previous posts, you know that the College Board is planning on implementing a new SAT in the spring of 2016. On Wednesday, the organization released new sample questions for the redesigned college admissions test.
A student can now view these sample questions for each of its sections and the College Board also released a “side-by-side” comparison of the current SAT and the new test. Looking at the combined reading and writing sections, the comparison shows how the new test will be more “evidence-based” and will actually weave in information from other sections, such as science and history.
College Board President David Coleman and College Board Chief of Assessment Cynthia Schmeiser wrote in a letter posted on the board website, “The changes to the SAT will distinguish it from any current admission exam. There will be real-world applications of reading and math not only in science, but also in social science and career contexts involving both text and graphics.”
For example, according to the report, a sample question from the reading and writing section asks students to determine the meaning of words in context. Another example focuses on students having to answer questions about a speech and identifying the author’s stance in the argument and citing parts of the speech that best support the answer.
In addition, math questions will focus on “the heart of algebra,” problem-solving and data analysis, problems centering on topics relevant to college and career work, and additional subjects, including geometry and trigonometry.
This new SAT is due to the fact that Coleman and other experts have stated that the current SAT is too “disconnected” from what students are actually learning in the classroom and that the new SAT needs to have questions more applicable to real-world events and historical occurrences.
Coleman and Schmeiser also added, “The redesigned SAT is just one part of our broader effort to deliver opportunity. By working together, we can ensure that many more students will be college and career ready and take advantage of the opportunities they have earned.”
Still, the majority of students will need guidance in preparing for both the SAT and the ACT, the other college admissions exam. Reading the sample questions may familiarize a student with the exam, but learning how to take the test, preparing for it, and being successful requires help from outside sources.
At Advanced College Solutions, Inc. we can help you as we offer a variety of programs on preparing for the college admissions exams. So if you are planning on taking one of these tests, please call us and set up an appointment.