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“Fair Test” Procedures for SAT Day
After my terrible SAT experience last Saturday, I decided to look into whether or not any official rules had been broken.
Turns out there is an official SAT rule guide, The SAT Standard Testing Room Manual, which I think is worth reading before you take an SAT (especially Section A, which is only 11 pages long).
From the first paragraph:
“The SAT Program has established policies and procedures to ensure that all students can test under a uniform set of conditions …. All students are to be protected from disturbance. By strictly following our policies and procedures, you give students the best guarantee of fair testing.”
Personally, I felt intimidated to say something to the proctor because I wasn’t sure if official “rules” were broken, or whether they were “courtesies” he was forgoing.
And if I had trouble speaking up (i.e. a grown up who’s not usually afraid to speak her mind), I imagine it would be even more difficult for a teenager to muster the courage — especially if he or she isn’t even sure about the official rules.
I did speak to the proctor at the first break and told him that lopping off five minutes of our time mid-way through a Reading Section really threw me — and he responded by saying, “it was the lesser of two evils,” which did not leave me inclined to speak up again, when the noise disturbances from other kids who had finished the test in the same gym became so loud that they echoed for our last 4 sections.
Turns out this proctor was wrong. It was not “the lesser of two evils” to cut off five minutes of our time, mid-section. In fact there there is an official rule in the manual for this exact situation: “Overtiming: Make no adjustment.”
That was just the beginning of the broken rules last Saturday…..
1) The “Visible Clock” Rule:
I have experienced this “visible clock” issue a few times over the course of the 6 SATs I’ve taken this year (5 different locations). But, “lack of visibility” last Saturday was the least of my problems.
Start with the fact that the proctor inexplicably wrote the time down in the middle of the the Essay Section (after telling us before we started that he had no chalk to do so) — but he didn’t write it in our time zone time — because, as he later explained to me when I asked, the (non-visible) clock turned out not to be in ourtime zone.
Fine, except that it confused me to see ”a time” (but not our time) suddenly appear on the blackboard without explanation.
Also, there were no “regular” time warnings, as mentioned above in the manual — I’d say they were more sporadic in nature (i.e. “2 minutes,” or nothing at all….)
2) Desk Size (Avoid having a “deskette” experience):
To be fair, my deskette last Saturday probably did meet this “official standard” — but I’m going to tell you now, that’s too small for an optimal SAT experience. 12” by 15” holds ONE 8 x 11 test booklet — except that there are TWO booklets that need holding when you take the SAT (plus your calculator for math sections, and pencils).
Lack of proper desk space adds a juggle variable to the SAT experience that is distracting, time consuming, stressful, and noisy. Try to find an SAT location with full desks (i.e. ask your friends).
3) Adult Test Takers:
I’ve experienced “assigned seating” once out of 6 SATs, and the fact of the matter is that I was assigned the front and center seat. Not sure if that was a coincidence.
4) Timing and Breaks:
I believe this rule was carefully followed at every other SAT that I took this year, which is how I ended up lulled into complacency last Saturday. I had grown toexpect this rule to be followed, and when it wasn’t (starting in Section 3), I was thrown for such a loop I had trouble recovering. Or maybe I was thrown off when the time mysteriously appeared on the board in a different time zone. I don’t know. Either way, this “Timing Policy” wasn’t followed, and it messed with me.
5) Reporting Irregularities:
I have no idea whether or not our proctor reported the “timing irregularities” that day.6) Student Complaints:
Ok, I’m not “a student,” but I did have many of these same complaints.
I could continue on with these screen shots of broken rules from last weekend, but instead I’ll just reiterate that any SAT test taker should read pages 1-11 of The SAT Standard Testing Room Manual before test day.
And speak up if a rule is broken!
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis
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Gmail Password Change Instructions for Mac, iPhone, iTunes
If you have a Mac, iPhone and iTunes, but use Google for Mail, Calendar, and Address Book, here are the directions if you change your password for Gmail to get it all working again. You have to have everything clicked perfectly, or it doesn’t work.
I hope to save somebody out there the hours of frustration hat I went through by changing ONE gmail password. (This happened to me the last time I changed the password too….but I forgot)
And if you EVER need computer help, call JKP Technologies. They work remotely. Tim Plaza is the guy who saved me this time, but they are all amazing.
iPhone:
- Settings
- Mail/Calendar Contacts
- Gmail
- Account (top)
- Change PW there
- Click Done (top right)
ITunes:
- Plug in Phone
- Info Tab
- Sync Address to Google Contacts (NOTE: Click Configure and change PW. If it doesn’t work — Click Itunes AT TOP OF COMPUTER and Quit ITunes FROM TOP OF COMPUTER)
- See Screenshots for Itunes Settings (below)
ICal:
- Click ICal at (Note: Quit iCal at the TOP OF COMPUTER, and then restart iCal)
- Preferences
- Accounts
- Click on Gmail account
- Change PW
- NOTE: There is no “Save” or “Apply” but when you X out, it auto saves.
Address Book:
- Click Address Book (Note: Quit Address Book at the TOP OF COMPUTER, and then restart it)
- Preferences
- Accounts
- Click Gmail Account Configure
- Change PW
- Click “Ok”
Shots from Itunes:
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IQ: What Does It All Mean?
From the book, Rapt: Attention and the Focused Life by Winifred Gallagher:
Asian students actually achieve much more than their IQs would seem to predict, because they work so hard in school. Thanks to their culture’s stress on academic achievement and not shaming the family, says Nisbett, “A Chinese-American with an IQ of 100 achieves at the level of a white American with an IQ of 120.”
I take this to mean that values and focus trump IQ. I can work harder. Ok, noted.
She goes on to say:
… What you pay attention to shapes your brain and behavior in surprising ways … The good news is that attention’s ability to change your brain and transform your experience isn’t limited to childhood but prevails throughout life.
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis
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Nov. 5, 2011 SAT #6 in 2011. Characterized: Egregious Proctor Complacency
And the lessons for others?
A) Never take the SAT in a “gym.”
B) I think November is a bad month because I experienced “proctor complacency” that bordered on egregious.
C) Don’t count on the proctors to keep the time for you! There are more lessons….to come.
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Day Before Test Day Thoughts
Are you taking the SAT tomorrow? I have this feeling it’s not one of the “popular dates.” Feels neither fish nor fowl to me (i.e. too late for seniors/too early for juniors).
This will be my 6th SAT in 2011, and my second to last before I’m done with this project. Then, onto the next (whatever that is). Everyone asks, “The ACT?” Maybe. I do want to take it once.
I will say this though: I got on this SAT horse and let the journey lead me, and I ended up in a completely different location than I ever expected. But that’s another blog post.
For now, a few last minute tips before test day:
- Read PWN’s Test Day FAQ. It goes well beyond “don’t forget your pencils.”
- Pack super dark chocolate bars for the breaks. Dagoba Superfruit is my favorite, but any dark chocolate with a high cocoa content (70% and higher) will do the trick (i.e. fits perfectly into a 5 minute break and gives you energy).
- Math Section Strategizing: PWNtheSAT and Philip Keller and Stacey Howe-Lott have all espoused a similar philosophy, which is to skip the last few questions and opt instead to be more diligent on the earlier questions. I vow to do my very best with this strategy tomorrow. (I know, finally…right? What can I say. I’m obstinate.)
And here is my personal MUST DO list for today:
- Yoga — Freddie’s class at 6 pm, which is super hard and seriously wears me out. Must enforce the “No Computer After Yoga” rule though (that’s what does me in every time).
- Pick up a breakfast cookie for SAT morning from the Red Barn Bakery (the best).
- Flip through my “SAT Recipe Cards,” some of which can be found on theSolutions Page of this sight (right nav bar, halfway down — for future reference). And scroll down because the ones at the bottom are good.
Good luck if you’re taking the SAT tomorrow!! Let me know how it goes. I’ll report back via video as soon as I get home.
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis
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Yesterday Was Difficult. Today Will Be Better.
I’ll start with the end:
I’m about to go purchase a filofax, which, if you’re taking the SAT this year, I’m sure you have no ideawhat I’m even talking about. And no, I’m not a technophobe; I’ve even been called an “early adopter.”
But I can’t survive another day like yesterday; I know I won’t make it. Technologynearly (not quite) brought me to my knees.
It was an email after the 6 hours of still unresolved technology issues that finally did me in.
Some unsolicited advice from the same tutor who told me last time that students such as her “younger self” don’t want even want to be in classes with people who can’t answer these SAT math problems. ”They’re so basic,” she said.
Her follow up email to me last night made that one look like it was written by Miss Manners.
You need to choose whether you want to admit that you are ignorant about math and did not receive a proper education or whether you are simply stupid. You seem to be choosing willfully stupid route, which is too bad. You do yourself a disservice in that you do not learn, and you also set a bad example for others.
(Does she talk to her students this way?)
I want to point out that I am not being “willfully stupid,” nor am I “simply stupid.”
However, I may not have received a proper education. That part could be true. And then add to my improper education about 30 years since my last math class, and voila, you have me.
Which brings me back to my improper math education:
If you want to know how my math education may have gone so awry, read this article by Barry Garelick in Education News: The Myth About Traditional Math Education.
Given that I am above the 60th percentile with my math score, I’m clearly not alone with my math improperness.
He traces the issue back to the 40’s, 50’s and 60’s, and discusses the changes in textbooks.
“The education establishment continues to advance faddish techniques such as a group of collaborative learning, inquiry-based and problem-based learning, while it pays lip service to traditional approaches, calling it a balanced approach.”
The whole article is well worth the read if your’e interested in math and education.
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis
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Words: Beware of the “Easy” Ones (they can be the trickiest)
The vocabulary aspect of the SAT remains my favorite part of this whole project. I’m referring here to both the “Vocabulary Section,” as well as the Critical Reading passages.
I never tire of learning new words, parsing words I already know, or being reminded of words I want to bring back into rotation. Take, for example, my list this week:
(All from actual SATs…Love.)
And while I can’t lay claim to knowing even close to all of the vocab on the SAT, I actually haven’t gotten any of the “vocab questions” wrong on test day (miraculously). I probably just jinxed myself.
But here’s the weird, subtle, issue with the words on the SAT that I want to shed light on:
The simple words give me more trouble than the sophisticated ones because they often require a “dictionary definition,” while I’m thinking in vernacular terms.
Take, for example, the word “nonplussed.” I was sure it meant “unfazed,” (right?), and answered the question accordingly, without it even occurring to me that there was another, older (more proper?) definition.
I got the question wrong.
The College Board was looking for the “bewildered,” or “not sure how to respond” definition of the word.
I was relieved to discover that I was in good company about the meaning of this word:
Meghan Daum, writing in the Los Angeles Times, was disappointed by Barack Obama’s use of the “unfazed”sense of the word when he said of his daughters’ response to media scrutiny, “I’ve been really happy by how nonplussed they’ve been by the whole thing.”
Here are a few other words that might not mean what you think they mean:
- Irregardless is not the opposite of regardless.
- Peruse might surprise you as well (hint: it’s the opposite of how most people use it).
- And cynical doesn’t really mean pessimistic.
But here’s the example that should really drive this point home: The word “bug” — I bet you can’t imagine not knowing what it means, right?
Well try this on for size:
The good news is that there wasn’t even a question about the word. The bad news is that I perseverated over it’s meaning while reading the passage, and lost precious seconds. (Don’t you do that!)
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis
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How’d You Do It? (i.e. Raise Your SAT Score)
Stacey Howe-Lott remains the single highest score increaser I’ve been able to personally locate. As implausible as this sounds, she’s a mom too, who discovered the joy of the SAT long after high school. Incidentally, Stacey is now an SAT tutor and works via Skype.
Unlike me (thus far, though I will optimistically point out that my year isn’t over), Stacey managed to raise her SAT Math score by leaps and bounds: from a 500 (45th percentile) to a 700 (93rd percentile). It took her the better part of a year to do so. She was already in the 98th percentile for both the Reading and Writing sections.
When I asked her how she did it, she told me, “I was a 40-year-old new mother at home with her baby, battling sleep deprivation, and desperate to find some sort of intellectual stimulation between cooing at the baby and doing more laundry. During nap-time, I’d work on SAT problems, approaching them as logic puzzles rather than a math death-march.”
Here are Stacey Howe-Lott’s Top Math Tips:
• Most students (500s-600s) can skip the hard questions
• Medium and hard questions don’t have easy answers
• Draw pictures to help you see the problem
• If you can’t solve the problem directly, estimate, backsolve or make up numbers
• Keep clam (That’s a Northwest joke. Keep calm for the rest of you)
And here’s what Stacey would have done differently:
• Hire a tutor for at least a couple of hours to put me on the right track. It would have saved so much time and heartache if I only knew where the find the best materials, what strategies I should follow, and who I should trust. I wasted so much time and money on bad materials, bad strategy and bad advice.
• Kept obsessive records from the beginning so I could track what I was learning and what I still needed to learn
• Focused in more quickly on the stuff I didn’t know. And learned just the amount I needed to use on the test.
I worked with Stacey for a month last Spring (before the June SAT). Here are the top 10 things I learned from our sessions together.
And, you can read her full story in this blog post, which includes some amazing quotes and more details.
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis
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In a word, yup.
At least if I’m to judge by the May 1997 SAT I took today (full, timed) out of theCollege Board RED Book (not to be confused with the Blue Book).
I felt like one of those tennis players with the wooden racquets.
First of all, it’s an hour shorter. Then, add to that the fact that each section is 5 minutes longer (which actually feels like an hour when you’re used to running like the wind, under the gun for an extra hour). It’s like the marathon you were training for just became 18 miles instead of 26.2. And they gave you Nike Airs instead of Converse.
That’s what it felt like.
The math seemed to be sans “tricks” as far as I can tell, but I haven’t had time to go back and study it carefully. No question though, easier. I actually finished a section and went back and checked my answers. I haven’t even come close to that on the current SAT.
Here are the take-aways:
1) If you’re looking for more reading passages (i.e you’ve run out of Blue Book material), these are legit. Same deal (but with the extra time allotted, which you can adjust accordingly if you want to). The “Verbal” sections also have the analogies, but I think it’s still a good exercise for the new SAT (i.e. thinking deeply about the meaning of words).
2) I think the math is legit practice too — unless you’re on the high end of the spectrum, and then I think this will be too easy.
3) Full recap of the experience in the video above (including my score).
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis
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I Have a Question: How’d You Do It?
Tell me the story
Whenever someone sends me their scores, I reply back with the same question:
How’d you do it?
My favorite email last week was from a father of a daughter who is a junior in high school. She took both the SAT and the PSAT this month (October). And lest you think to yourself, “that’s too much….” Guess what?
She rocked it!
- Critical Reading 800 (99%)
- Math 750 (97%)
- Writing 770 (99%)
Here’s how he responded to my “How’d she do it?” email:
Math: I had her do medium and hard level Blue Bookquestions. After less than two weeks I realized she was doing so well I moved onto writing (skipping 2/3 of Blue Book math). It was a judgement call on where to spend the limited resources (time).
Reading: She doesn’t know how or why she got an 800. She was shocked! Her pattern (recently) was to miss one CR (or none) and then miss one or two vocab.
Reading & Writing: I was pushing Erica’s suggestions to her continuously. Stacey had her do an exercise (because of timing issues) where time was reduced by one or two minutes for a CR section section. She did that several times.
And a lot of good old fashion luck!
Another emailer said, “My client, xxx told me yesterday that her daughter improved her SAT math score nearly 200 points by reading that Philip Keller book.”
And another emailer said that PWNtheSATs Math Truism — is true:
If you just want to break 600, you can skip FIVE QUESTIONS PER SECTION if you get all the rest of the questions right. Seriously.
You can read all about this truism in this post — and if you still want to read more,read this one too.
I’m sure you’re thinking to yourself right now, “If this truism is so true, why hasn’tshe tried it?” And honestly, I’m lol’ing as I read PWN’s post on the matter: “Don’t be obstinate!”
I want to write back to him and say, “I’m not obstinate. I’m special. I’mdifferent. I’m unique.”
I can’t stand it when I flip to the end of a section and see some luscious triangle problem on #20 that I feel sure I can do, or a #19 function table that I just practiced.
I’m obstinate!
When PWN was here yesterday, and we were going over my full timed practice SAT from last week, he very politely (and possibly even too subtly) said to me, “Let’s talk about the math.”
And I kind of smiled, and said back to him, “Yeah, you know, Catherine and I’ve been thinking maybe I should try that suggestion of yours about spending more time on the first 15, instead of barreling through the section.”
And then I added, “You don’t think I’m stubborn, do you?” To which he very delicately said back to me, “Um, First Serve Debbie?”
OMG, I’m obstinate.
I honestly can’t believe it. In a million years, I never would have described myself as obstinate, I swear to you. I thought I was flexible.
I’m hereby taking a public vow to try said truism, which is, in fact, espoused by all my favorite experts, on the next SAT (November 5, 2011). I’m even going to try it tomorrow on a full practice SAT from the Red Book (not to be confused with theBlue Book).
Ok, back to the purpose of this post:
I’m curious to hear from others, How’d You Do it?
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis
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”I like flaws and feel more comfortable around people who have them. I myself am made entirely of flaws, stitched together with good intentions.
Augusten Burroughs, Magical Thinking (via room42)
(Source: effyeahliteraryquotes)
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I’m Feeling Icarus
Why did I have to effuse in such an absurdly over the top manner the other day?
I’m pretty sure that’s where my bad luck began.
Trust me when I say that the jubilation came to a screeching halt right after I tallied my scores from a full practice SAT the very next morning.
Not a pretty sight. And humbling.
Please stop me if you ever see me doing that happy dance again.
This leads to a pile of melted feathers.
Anyway, 99.99% of the people who emailed after score day were of the extremely“supportive” variety (which made me feel so good. So thank you).
“You’re an inspiration to know that this can be conquered with some motivation and persistence.”
“Congrats!!!!! 800 in verbal is awesome!! if only the SAT gods would be so merciful to me :O) “
“You are totally cracking me up! And making me a little less afraid to take the GRE.”
“OMG perfectscoreproject…..you’re the coolest mom ever.”
Even my own teenage daughter told me how proud she was of me.
But of course there had to be one email (from a tutor offering advice) that I never should have opened up right after scoring that 5 hour (punishing) practice SAT. And on a belly full of nothing more than a few chocolate fumes, I began to read this lengthy email:
She told me that I’m on the wrong track, that this test is “ridiculously easy,” and that the kids at the top schools (“including her younger self”) don’t want to be in classes with kids who can’t answer these questions. ”They are so basic,” she said. And then she added that the fact that I haven’t been given a good math education shows up in my score, “and my writing.”
Ow.
I perseverated for days. (And yes, I use this word a lot. I like it.)
And then I woke up this morning and thought to myself, you know, I’m standing by my opinion: This test is hard.
Say what you will, but I urge you to give it a go yourself if you’ve got a kid coming up to bat in the next few years. The College Board offers a free practice SAT on their website. Take it all at once, and timed, so you can experience the full effect.
My friend Catherine, at Kitchen Table Math, has written a few posts recently about the difficulty of the SAT that are well worth the read.
One father wrote to me that his daughter, a high school junior, seemed to pick the math up very easily. After a few weeks he made a judgement call not to spend their limited resources (i.e. time) on the math section, but rather focus on the reading and writing instead:
“Where most of the solutions to the SAT questions are rather simple and straight forward if you can get the “trick” to the question. I mention all this because the math is somewhat of a gift in that the ones who have math “insight” can see the trick and quickly answer the question. And getting a physics degree at Columbia doesn’t necessary mean you have that gift. Part of what happened with my daughter is she started “seeing” the insights necessary to answer the questions.”
I suspect he is right. There is a degree of “gift” and “insight” that is beyond the scope of how well educated you are and how hard you’ve worked. And different people have different gifts.
Anyway, enough about this from me for now.
Charts & Graphs have been updated to reflect the latest scores.
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis
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October SAT Scores Are in……
Given my inexorably optimistic nature, all I can see is the good news (Sorry. I realize that must seem annoying).
Hopefully I’ll come down from my cloud in time to study for the next SAT (Nov. 5)
The math…..what is wrong with me?
- 1. I love it……still, despite my score. Love. Well, maybe love/hate. But more love.
- 2. I’ve learned a ton of math, regardless of my SAT score. No Question. Ask anyone who knows me.
- 3. I’m not giving up (never never never)
- 4. I’m feeling like it might be time to try Dr. Chung again.
- 5. All of you math show offs from comments in this post, I refuse to let you bring me down. I’m having fun. I’m working hard. I’m smart, for goodness sakes.**
**I have a former boyfriend who used to always say to me, “I’m not lazy!” — Like I was calling him lazy or something; except that I wasn’t. In fact, I wasn’t eventhinking it (because he wasn’t lazy). But after the 50th time he told me he wasn’t lazy, I asked him if someone had called him lazy when he was a little boy, because I was not calling him lazy.
That’s what I feel like with this SAT Math — like I want to post my IQ score so everyone knows “I’m not dumb you guys….” And, I’m not lazy (I swear. Ask my kids.)
It’s got to be the fault of the test. (I’m kidding. Don’t pounce.)
Ok, gtg hit the books now.
I GOT AN 80000000000000000000 ON THE WRITING!!!
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis
(Source: perfechttp)
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SUBMISSION: From the film Sidewalls.
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Hand drawn eco-friendly mini journal made from 100% post consumer...
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Undersea Landscape on Flickr.
Undersea Landscape in Little Corn Island, Nicaragua.
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