Do I really need a prep course/tutor for the SATs?

Test Preparation SAT Preparation
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<p>Hi, my parents (especially my mom) and I are trying to decide whether or not a prep course or tutor is suitable for me. I'm going to be a junior next year.</p>

<p>Now, I know that from a practice test I took on December of last year. I got around a 1450, I think.</p>

<p>However, I've been only been practicing recently because of the busy schedule I had during the spring. The books I mainly use are the Blue Book and Barron's SAT 2400 (great book btw. good for really telling me why answers are wrong if I get wrong answers on the Blue Book). </p>

<p>The problem is that my goal is to get around a 2200 on the SATs. Most of my scores from that practice test I took on December are around low 500s-high 500s (excluding the essay, b/c I don't get the time to get it graded for some reason. don't ask). Also, if I do any 25 minute tests, like reading, math, or writing, I usually get the same amount of problems wrong. I KNOW why I get them wrong. </p>

<p>However, I don't know if part of my error comes from comprehension or concentration problems, when considering critical reading. I usually know, and immediately understand, why I get the answer wrong from looking at the blue book's answer keys and reanalyzing the, long passages. But the deal is, sometimes, I feel like I don't understand the passage and I have to reread the passage to understand it again. Same thing with Writing. I understand why I get the answers wrong once I see the wrong answers. </p>

<p>The math section bothers me sometimes. The hard problems really annoy me but the medium and easy problems, I usually can tackle.</p>

<p>If I am sometimes a little bit more careful on the math section and possibly the other sections, I probably can get my score more higher. So far, it's been two weeks since I've restarted studying. I'm pretty motivated to study, but at the same time, want to be realistic when studying. My goal is to take the SATs on October. </p>

<p>What type of advice do you guys want to give? Is it really worth it to get a tutor or go to a prep class? I personally don't think it will help me to have a prep class "help me comprehend/concentrate better" on the test, especially critical reading, or avoid making careless mistakes on math.</p>

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<p>the princeton review course helped me dramatically and focused me on what exactly i needed to do</p>

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<p>Prep/tutors are worthless! I'm a better tutor than any of them, I can guarantee it... and I charge nothing</p>

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<p>I say go for it, it can't hurt. If you don't think you will be able to focus yourself or study on your own then absolutely do it.</p>

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<p>hi avex--for me it's a cost/benefit thing. is the cost of the preparation you use going to be paid back in the long term?</p>

<p>if your score goes up to 2200+, that may well be worth something, whether in terms of your admissions chances or your scholarship chances. on the other hand, it may also end up not being worth anything. you'll have to look at your "total package" from an adcom's standpoint and decide how much of a difference your high score will make.</p>

<p>so the question is really in two parts: first, what are the chances that you'll get a higher score if you use outside help? second, what are the chances that this higher score, if you get it, will help you out?</p>

<p>if you're asking whether you <em>need</em> outside help to do better on the test, i'd say no, you don't. using xiggi's method as a guide, you can almost certainly improve your score markedly on your own.</p>

<p>i'd also have to disagree with the idea that it can't hurt to get outside help. i've seen it hurt lots of people if the outside help isn't any good :) if you do decide to get some help, make sure to follow a recommendation from someone you trust, and not an advertising campaign, when you make your decision.</p>

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<p>I think if you are motivated enough, you really don't need a tutor. Everything they teach in class is basically in practice books that you could easily buy at a store.</p>

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<p>thanks, you guys.
im pretty motivated to study actually. i think it's because i have nothing really to do lol.</p>

<p>i've tried xiggi's method and so far, yeah, learning why certain things are wrong is usually not difficult for me at all. i think the problem is that i have a hard time concentrating or carefully doing the test, but other than that, if i get an answer wrong once i find out after i study, i usually can understand why.</p>

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<p>First thing is, I would make your score improvement goal a little more realistic. If you are at 1450 right now, a 2200 would require a jump of nearly 800 points. No test prep company or tutor is going to be able to promise you that, and setting your sights so high is setting you up for early discouragement. Set your preliminary goal a little lower, perhaps at 1600+ -- that's far more attainable. If you achieve that, then up the notch to 1800+. Take small steps.</p>

<p>Secondly, as a Kaplan tutor myself, I almost never advise students to take the test prep courses without trying other things first. They are expensive, they are time-consuming, and they aren't the most fun thing to do on a Saturday morning. What you need is to take more timed practice tests and isolate your problems.</p>

<p>If your problem is, as you stated, either reading comprehension or concentration/test anxiety, a test prep course will not help you. The best critical reading tutor cannot improve your reading comprehension in 16 weeks; he or she is only going to teach you tricks and tips to eke a bit higher score out of your standing ability. The only way to improve reading comprehension is, ironically, to read and read often. (When I tell my students this, they look at me as if I have grown another head.)</p>

<p>Now if your problem is that you need help learning how to tackle the question types, or that you cannot study without someone to motivate you, then I would suggest a tutor. The writing section is a different monster altogether; I enjoy tutoring this (particularly the essay) because the skills can be learned and it is a 'coachable' section.</p>

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<p>i have to disagree with that, respectfully. or maybe i should say that i'd approach the question differently.</p>

<p>it may be true that a tutor can't improve your <em>actual ability to comprehend what you're reading</em> in 16 weeks. but this ability isn't what's being tested on the Reading Comprehension section of the SAT. i've taken people from bombing those RC questions to missing one or two on the entire test in literally about an hour. and you're right--it's done by teaching "tricks" in the formatting of the test. but this is all the SAT is. trying to get a higher SAT score by improving the skills that the SAT claims to be testing is like trying to get a promotion at McDonald's by attending culinary school. the SAT is a mechanical, "trick"-laden process. (i'm not talking about tricks in the way that most people think of them--there are no rules on the SAT like "when in doubt choose (C)." but i guess you could call knowing how to identify wrong answers based on patterns of the test a "trick.") knowing math, grammar, and reading isn't going to help much beyond a very basic level. or, at least, that's my opinion.</p>

<p>a great example to prove this point is question 20 on page 400 of the College Board blue book. according to the CB, this question was one of the hardest on the entire math section, but it doesn't use any more advanced math than the number line. people didn't miss this question because they don't know what the number line is. they've known the number line since middle school. they missed the question because they didn't realize it was about the number line. this is a common thing on the SAT--people miss questions because they don't realize what they're being asked to do. they think knowing advanced math will help them on the math section, or knowing how to parse poetry will help them on the reading section, or knowing formal grammar will help them on the writing section. not necessarily so.</p>

<p>i'd still recommend prepping on your own, though. i don't think you need someone to teach you, although that would probably save you some time. take your time, use the xiggi method, post questions on cc, and i'm sure you'll do fine. as far as focusing on the test, that'll come. give it a little time.</p>

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<p>Hi Avex,</p>

<p>This may sound strange, but your test scores are much lower than I would have predicted from reading your post. :) Your writing shows that you have a decent mastery of English, but your scores are mediocre. This kind of discrepancy (pretty good reader/writer, so-so scores) sometimes happens when a student is just not familiar enough with the structure of the test or the types of problems that the SAT contains. Are you getting A-s (or As) in English? If so, I'd say that you're very likely in this category.</p>

<p>I'd say that a really good tutor could help you significantly, but a run-of-the-mill course like Kaplan might not. I would, however, prepare on your own, and I'd read a few prep books and study tactics.</p>

<p>As a tutor specializing in CR, I can say that quality tutoring can <em>definitely</em> help a student comprehend the CR section better (in some cases, way better). Still, it's not a must. For you, though, practice tests probably are (a must, that is).
Good luck!</p>

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<p>hi lotf629</p>

<p>so far during my practice test work when looking at critical reading/writing, when i slow down and do the work untimed, i understand how to do it. </p>

<p>i realized after analyzing the test and the types of questions the SAT has to offer, that the SAT really isn't that hard. it just takes practice for me in order to quickly understand what really is in the test. </p>

<p>sometimes happens when a student is just not familiar enough with the structure of the test or the types of problems that the SAT contains</p>

<p>I do get As in English, but then again, our English classes in my school are really easy in high school and we would barely talk about grammar.</p>

<p>i'm trying to build the familiarity of the tests. so yeah, i'lll put that in my mind and see what i can do. thanks. i haven't done an actual practice test in a long time TIMED, so i can't really give an estimate on my results. but based on my gut feeling and how much I've learned, i think i'm improving</p>

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<p>bumped the thread.
hey, would speed-reading books help me?</p>

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<p>The main value of a prep class are the practice tests. While you could take practice tests by yourself at home if you're motivated enough, taking a practice test in an actual room with other students is closer to the real thing.</p>