<p>I have a tutor for the SAT and I've been going to him once a week. This week I am going to go to him 3x. Im just concentrating on math right now and i cannot break a 560 if my life depended on it. I've been studying so much and working very hard taking practice test after practice test. I just don't know what to do. I have a 98 average in math and cannot seem to grasp some of the concepts. Should I just wait and I will just see a dramatic improvement soon? Im taking the SAT again in October. The first time I took it I got a 510 so I went up 50 points. I feel like I should be getting in the high 600's. Im 19th in a class of 521 and the only thing holding me back from going to a great school are these stupid tests! Any advice will give me some solace. And if theres anyone else out there that is a good student, but just doesn't do well on the SAT's comment also.</p>
<p>^ What math are you in? And yes, the SAT math encourages a different way of thinking than your traditional school math. Still, if you truly have "amazing grades" your CR should be fairly decent as well as your Writing (if you know the rules). </p>
<p>Don't be discouraged with your initial results and convince yourself that you are a poor student. It's really how well you know the SAT which establishes itself very much independently from how well you do in school.</p>
<p>If your scores arnt improving even though your visiting a private tutor once a week, you should quit the class. One class a week should be more than enough to increase your scores to the upper 600's. </p>
<p>"I have a 98 average in math and cannot seem to grasp some of the concepts "</p>
<p>That doesn't make any sense- are you talking about concepts as in "The area if a square is s^2" ? If so, you should sue your teacher.</p>
<p>Work smarter, not harder.</p>
<p>My CR and Writing are pretty bad too. I just finshed Algebra and Trig for my junior year. I just get all the easy questions right most of the mediums and none of the hard. Some of the functions and graphing questions are a mystery to me.</p>
<p>^ Only alg2/trig as a junior? Wasn't that supposed to be in freshman year & Calc BC in the junior year?</p>
<p>You are not as brilliant in math as you think you are. Buy some SAT books (look at the thread), more specifically - buy Gruber's (from what I hear about it). Sit down and pour over its techniques because SAT math is different from Alg 2/Trig.</p>
<p>thats the math all kids in my grade take they dont offer anything higher</p>
<p>in my grade*</p>
<p>A2491, It seems to me that you go to a grade inflated school. I agree with quix's "Work smarter, not harder." idea. Take that into account. SAT Math is way too easy and by you getting a 560 shows that you definitely didn't deserve to get a 98. Sorry if i was too harsh.</p>
<p>ha its ok. lol it just makes me want to work harder. thank you for all your input.</p>
<p>SAT doesn't really test curriculum math, but I agree it is fairly simple once you become oriented with it. Amazing grades don't really mean much, especially since I can already tell that your school probably isn't that competitive. And the SAT math is different from the curriculum math and it's not as straightforward. ^I'm sure you've heard of people who score only about high 600s to low 700s on SAT 1 math, but perfects on SAT 2 Math IIC.</p>
<p>If he/she works hard in the class he/she deserves a good grade.</p>
<p>If he/she gets a good grade, he/she does not necessarily deserve a good SAT score. I fail to see why people seem to correlate the two so heavily. If anything, if you get good math grades, expect to get a grasp of the SAT's tested subjects faster than without good math grades.</p>
<p>I don't think tutor gonna be the answer for your problem. The fact is tutors always think differently with us. They can't really understand how 18 years old boy/girl approachs when solving a Maths problem. So my advise is you should study with your friends, not your tutor
I'm not a Maths genius, but I can help you a little bit in this field. Contact me via PM. I also need a native English speaker to be my CR tutor . lol</p>
<p>are you a senior?</p>
<p>I'm college freshman. But I will re-apply to US's University next year</p>
<p>My SAT score in math shot up significantly once I took pre calculus, so it makes sense (at least in my head) for the OP to have trouble.</p>
<p>560 isn't terrible. It's like in the 64th percentile or so. It'll take a lot of practice, and you'll have to work on visualizing the concepts. Try to aim for a 600, because a "low 700" (if just can't "grasp" concepts) won't be happening. It'd be different if you were lazy and just got the 560, but if you're working hard and nothing is happening, you have to reassess your strategy.</p>
<p>Well, actually, there's always a shortcut in every Maths question. The problem is how can you figure out it. Also some hidden formulars are helpful, but overall, SAT Maths doesn't test your concepts-memorizing</p>