SAT Writing Exam

The sections on the writing exam are used to test your knowledge of grammar, usage and mastery of English.  The exam consists of an essay subsection and 2 subsections of multiple choice questions.

Essay

The Essay is 30% of your Writing score.  It is generally given as the first section of the entire test.  This section is 25 minutes long.  The essay is not expected to be a final polished paper.  The objective is to write your point of view on a specific issue, and the essay will be your written response to a prompt.

In your essay in the writing section, scoring is done by two SAT graders who will each give a score on a scale of 1-6.  The essay must be legible and written with a number 2 pencil.  The two scores are summed to give a final score of between 2 and 12.

In order to achieve the highest score possible on the essay, your essay must have plenty of detail, be written with correct English, and display your mastery of the English language.  Also, there is some evidence that longer essays score higher.  Be sure to provide examples in any of your writing and as much supporting detail as possible for your point of view.

When you are presented with the question in the writing section, first identify what is being asked.  There will usually be two points of view that could be chosen for your essay.  Identify these two points of view and select the one for which you can provide the most supporting detail.  Take a minute to plan your writing and then begin writing.  Be sure your essay has a good introduction and conclusion.

Multiple Choice

The multiple choice questions are 70% of your Writing score.  There are three types of questions in this section:  error identification in sentences, sentence improvement, and paragraph improvement.

The Identifying Sentence Errors questions are the simplest on the Writing test.  For these questions, the student must locate the word producing the source of the error or indicate that the sentence has no error.  Here are some things to look out for in error identification of sentences:

        Subject-verb agreement

Pronoun/Antecedent Agreement

Verb Tenses

Adjectives, Adverbs

Verbals

Parallel Structure

Idiomatic Expressions in English

Some of the trickier questions in this section include subjects that sound plural, but are singular.  Practice these in your preparation and always keep in mind what is performing the action in the sentence.

The Sentence Improvement section of the Writing test requires the student to select an acceptable fix to an awkward sentence.  In these questions, the sentence/grammar may or may not be incorrect, but the sentence could be improved in some way.  For each of these multiple choice questions, one of the choices will always be no change to the original sentence.  When completing these questions, it is helpful to first determine if an error exists and then think of how to fix the error before looking at the answer choices.  The most common errors you will encounter on this exam are errors in parallel structure, modifiers, and compound structure. 

The Paragraph Improvement section of the Writing test usually has about 6 questions.  The purpose is to test your understanding of how to logically organize ideas.  You will be shown a poorly written paragraph and asked a series of questions on how the paragraph could be improved.  The sentences within the paragraph will be numbered.  Some questions will refer you back to the numbered sentences, so you can identify the sentence in question quickly.  The questions you encounter could be about meaning, structure and word usage in the paragraph.   This section will cover all the areas of grammar and usage that are covered by the sentence error and sentence improvement sections.

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SAT Mathematics Exam

Mathematics

The Mathematics section of the exam tests knowledge of algebra and functions, statistics, probability and data analysis, and geometry. There will be 3 test sections in the Mathematics area:

• 25 minute multiple choice section of 20 questions

• 25 minute section with 8 multiple choice and 10 grid-in questions

• 20 minute multiple choice section of 16 questions

Multiple choice questions will include 5 potential answers, one of which is correct. You will be given 1 point for each correct answer and will lose ¼ point for each incorrect answer on the multiple choice questions. Be certain of the correct answer before answering a multiple choice question.

Grid-in questions are free answer questions that are not multiple choice. The test taker must solve the problem presented and write the answer in the appropriate grid. The grid has space provided for four characters or numbers. There is no penalty for incorrectly answered grid-in questions.

The areas of mathematics that you may see on the exam include:

• Numbers and operations

• Algebra and functions

• Geometry

• Statistics

• Probability

• Data Analysis

You are allowed to bring and use a calculator to the math exam. Although most questions are designed to be answered without the use of a calculator, it can be helpful to have a calculator to check simple arithmetic and reduce simple mistakes. Also using the calculator can help you complete the test questions more quickly. Be sure that you have had time to practice taking the test with the calculator you will be bringing. Also be sure your calculator has fresh batteries and bring an extra set of batteries on test day.

There is space on the test booklet for you to take notes and work problems by hand as needed. For some questions on the math exam, you may find it helpful to draw diagrams or do scratch work on paper. You will not be graded on any work done on the test booklet.

Questions in the math sections are presented in order of difficulty, with the easier ones appearing earlier on. So focus on answering the questions in the beginning of the sections correctly. Practice using common strategies for answering multiple choice questions during your test preparation. If a question seems too complicated to be completed in a reasonable amount of time, look at it again. There may be a simple shortcut. Also, in most cases all information and details given in the question are needed to solve it.

You will be relieved to know that you are not expected to memorize formulas for the exam. Commonly used formulas will be provided in the test booklet at the beginning of each Math section. Note that just because a formula is given does not mean it will be used. You will determine which formula, if any, is needed for each question.

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SAT Test - An Overview

About the SAT Test

The SAT test is also referred to as the SAT Reasoning Test, and is used for college admissions in the United States. The test measures critical thinking skills, problem solving, and knowledge. The three major sections in the exam are: Critical Reading, Mathematics, and Writing. The test takes about 4 hours to complete. Each section is scored separately, and you can receive a score between 200 – 800 points for each section. The score for each section can be added together to give your composite. The highest possible composite score for the exam is 2400.

The exam will be split into 10 sub-sections. There will be 3 sub-sections of Critical Reading, 3 of Mathematics, and 3 of Writing. The 10th sub-section on the exam is an experimental one that is not included in your score for the exam. It will be an extra set of questions for one of the 3 major sections (Reading, Mathematics or Writing). It is used by the College Board to test new questions. You will not know which section is the experimental one, so you will want to do as well as you can on all sections. Occasionally students do find that the experimental section is more confusing or different than the other sections. So, while this may give you a clue that it is the experimental section you will not know for sure.




Many of the sections on the exam are multiple choice. For multiple choice sections, you will receive 1 point for every correct answer and 0 points for any question that is not answered. For questions that are answered incorrectly, you will LOSE ¼ of a point. So it is important that you have high confidence in any answer that you choose to make.


Critical Reading


The Critical Reading section of the exam consists of completing sentences, reading comprehension and critical reading of paragraphs. The 3 subsections consist of two 25 minute sections and one 20 minutes section. Each section has various types of questions, starting with sentence completion and continuing with questions about reading passages. In general, questions at the beginning of the sections are easier than those later on. All questions in this section are multiple choice.



Mathematics


The Mathematics section of the exam tests the student’s knowledge of algebra and functions, statistics, probability and data analysis, and geometry. There are 3 sub-sections in the Mathematics area: One 25 minutes section that is entirely multiple choice, one 25 minute section that contains 8 multiple choice questions and 10 grid-on questions, a third section that is 20 minutes and consists of all multiple choice questions. Calculators are allowed to be used on the exam. Graphing calculators or scientific calculators would be the most useful, but it is important that the test-taker have working knowledge of the calculator before entering the testing site.


Writing


The Writing section tests knowledge of grammar, usage and word choice. There is also an essay sub-section that is 25 minutes long and is usually the first section of the test. All essays are written as a response to a given prompt. The other two subsections in Writing are multiple choice questions that can include identification of errors and improvement of sentences or paragraphs.


Tips for the SAT Exam

• Familiarize yourself with the format of the exam.

• Allow about 4-6 months to prepare for the exam.

• To improve your reading comprehension skills, practice reading any type of English material available to you, such as newspapers and books. Listening to spoken English, such as on a podcast can also be helpful.

• Take as many practice exams as possible. Take the practice tests as if you were actually taking the exam.

• Look at examples of all sections of the exam. Familiarize yourself with the instructions for each section so you do not spend too much time during the exam figuring out what is being asked of you.

• Practice writing by keeping a journal or writing essays on various topics.

• Take time to read all questions on the exam carefully.

• For each sub-section the easier questions will be first. As you move through each section, the questions will get harder. So concentrate on answering the questions at the beginning correctly. For most people a good score on the exam is not determined by how many questions you answer, but by how many you answer correctly.

• Practice skipping questions that are difficult and/or may take too much time to complete. Every question is worth the same number of points, so do not spend time on more difficult questions until you have completed all the easier ones.

• If you are planning to use a calculator in the exam, take time to familiarize yourself with its operation. You want to learn how to use the features of your particular calculator before you take the test.

If you are looking for help with your SAT Exam preparation, I do offer private tutoring services. I am a private SAT Tutor and have successfully coached many English learners.

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SAT Critical Reading Exam

The Critical Reading section of the SAT exam consists of completing sentences, reading comprehension, and critical reading of paragraphs.  The 3 subsections consist of two 25 minute sections and one 20 minute section.  Each section has various types of questions, starting with sentence completion and continuing with questions about reading passages. 

All questions in this section are multiple choice questions.  Questions in this section, unlike in other sections, are not presented in order of question difficulty.  They are presented as sets, and the reading passages are generally presented in order of difficulty.  The questions related to each reading passage are asked in chronological order, i.e. the order in which they appear in the passage.

Many people find the time constraint of the SAT challenging.  So, for this section it is important to read at the appropriate pace.  If you read too slowly, you will run out of time.  If you read too quickly, you may miss key points and answer questions incorrectly.  Your preparation activities, including timed practice tests, should give you a feel for how to pace your reading during the exam.

Sentence Completion

The Critical Reading section of the SAT will most likely begin with around 8 sentence completion questions.  The purpose of these questions is to test your vocabulary and understanding of sentence structure.  Usually the question will ask you to select a word or words that best completes the sentence.

Be sure you look at all multiple choice options before you make an answer on your sheet.  You may find it helpful to try to think of words that fit into the blanks before you look at the answers.  Since time is a constraint, options can be eliminated if the first word does not fit.

Reading Passages

Most of the Critical Reading section is made up of questions about reading passages.  You will be asked to read short passages on various subjects and answer questions based on the passage.  Some sections may have questions where you will be asked to compare two reading passages that offer differing perspectives on the same topic.  There will be some questions on each passage individually, followed by questions about both passages together.

Before each passage, there will be a short, italicized introduction that will describe the passage.  Read this introduction first and then the questions related to the passage before reading the passage.  This will give you an idea of what information you need from the passage to answer the questions.  The lines in each passage will be numbered.  Many questions will refer to specific line numbers in the passage.  Use these numbers to direct you to places in the passage you can find the answer.

Some of the questions asked about passage will include:  details straight from the passage, questions about vocabulary, questions about the author’s attitude toward a subject, questions about what the author’s agenda is, and questions about the main ideas of the passage.

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