Students cram for SATs before test changes

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May is not a month John Alexander Powell is looking forward to. 

“No matter how much you prepare, are you ever really ready for the test?” the David A. Stein Riverdale/Kingsbridge Academy (M.S./H.S. 141) student asked on March 12. 

John is one of the students preparing for the May SAT through the Riverdale Neighborhood House’s (RNH) prep class. 

Each week, about a dozen eleventh grade students meet in the organization’s new teen center for three hours of practice questions, review and discussion of test-taking tips. 

For students like John, the sessions are long, especially after a full day of school, but important. 

“I have goals that I want to accomplish,” said the student, who hopes to study computer science at New York University. “I’m really focused on getting my scores as high as possible.” 

Theirs will be the last class to take the current version of the SAT. In 2016, the College Board plans to roll out a new form of the test. Along with a revamp of the math and critical reading sections, it will include an optional essay section. Further, it will go back to the test’s original scale of 1600 points, rather than the current 2400.

Test makers say they will pick vocabulary words that students actually use in college, instead of more obscure and antiquated words. Students will also be asked to solve problems that are based on real-world applications, to align with Common Core standards. 

Since the Kaplan course at RNH is focused on the current test, however, RNH’s College Directions Coordinator Caitlin Proscia advised students to take the test before January 2016. 

For many of the students, time management is one of the most stressful parts of taking the test. 

Raimundo Sanchez, 17, was grateful for the course’s emphasis on completing questions in the allotted time.

The junior was unhappy with his PSAT score from his sophomore year.

SATs, Riverdale Neighborhood House, RKA, College Board, Common Core, Maya Rajamani
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