Hi, I was wondering if any of the SAT books on grammar or critical reading by Elisa Meltzer would be good to use to study with. If anyone has any experience with these books, please leave your experience below.
The books do a great job of breaking down the aspects of grammar you must know for the test. These book are very detailed in their explanations, and so I think some students are daunted by the long explanations. These are not quick and dirty texts, but ones for students and tutors who want all the information.
I primarily use them with advanced students (above 600 on the Reading/Grammar section).
Very good; got me a large score increase.
10/10
@academiccoach, Do you use her critical reading text also. What is your opinion for kid going for NMF.
I am wanting to know what gives the most bang for the buck. When the buck is valuable time.
Also how does Khan compare?
I have used all of her books (SAT and ACT) since she first published about 7 or 8 years ago. They are all excellent, but the biggest mistake I see when students self-study is that they impatiently rush through everything and essentially “waste” the materials.
Khan Academy is working in partnership with the College Board, and thus should be the closest to the official materials. Some tutors have criticized the materials because there are question types that have not shown up on the first 4 released tests. But I am open to the possibility that Khan Academy has more data on the full array of question types the College Board is will to use, and 4 tests is not enough data to predict the future of the test.
For students who are struggling with the Reading/Writing sections I would suggest both as viable options. The difference will depend on the individual student. Khan is a little more simplified and probably easier for students who are not as self motivated whereas as Meltzer requires a little more focus to read through a lot of detailed and well considered explanations of both the concepts being tested and explanations of why wrong answers are wrong and right answers are right. While all students benefit from this type of systematic and meticulous approach, it is often the final key for my students who want that perfect score.
Bottom Line is that Meltzer gives the most bang for the buck, but requires more of the student. However, students should be completing all of the 6 official practice tests under as close to real conditions as possible (timed and all at once) to fully prepare.
Thank you @academiccoach, for your very thoughtful response.
I also wanted to know if child’s weakest area is writing and then reading. Do we do both of Erica’s books at the same time or one after the other. And which one would be first.
I plan on doing this prep with her. I have looked the CR book over and don’t think I could hand it over and say “work it”.
I would work your way through the writing book first while expanding vocabulary which is applicable to both sections. Yes, I would agree that the Reading Book is daunting for weak readers to tackle on their own. Reading is tough to improve in a short amount of time. A good strategy to use to boost reading skills is to read an article a day and have the student summarize it and explore vocabulary they find unfamiliar. New York Times and www.aldaily.com are good resources for free articles that are the right difficulty level.
There are now six real CB tests available. Not one of them has a single analogy question or except question, both of which appear multiple times in every KA test’s reading section. The KA tests were not developed by the same people who developed the real tests, plain and simple.
(oh, and it’s Erica, not Elisa, @qwerty919191 )
Yes, you are correct. There are now 6 tests, but at the time I had not seen the other 2. I believe I said that Khan due to its partnership with the College Board “should” be the closest. I was just trying to add some perspective to a confusing set of circumstances, not disparage anyone else’s views. I was just stating that there was a possibility that Khan Academy had inside knowledge. If Khan Academy is presenting misleading materials, then perhaps the College Board who have presented Khan Academy as the “free” alternative needs to address the disparity.
I do agree with you that in general the KA stuff is the closest to the real thing, but it’s important to me as a teacher to note the significant discrepancies. Best of luck!
Can anyone speak to a comparison of Khan to other online paid programs like prepscholar? I’m helping a local public school that targets first generation college students develop an in-house test preparation program and looking into content options. The school was asking about ACT prep, but given that Khan is a free resource, I’m thinking that might be a better place to start.