The algebra and geometry can and should be reviewed. That doesn’t take a huge amount of time and seems worth the investment considering you probably see improvement in the other skills over time.
D went from a 28 to a 36 between Sophomore and Junior year. We looked at group classes and did not see how that could really work given the different range of abilities, might help with overall test strategy. We then used Studypoint which is expensive, one-on-one tutoring. Every Sunday a full ACT for about 12 weeks. D felt that we wasted our money, that she could have achieved the same outcome if she had simply taken practice tests herself. We had to change tutors after a few weeks because the first one was essentially useless. There is certainly value to working through practice tests multiple times until there are no issues with test format or anxiety. If your child is disciplined enough to do this without a tutor or a group session then save the money. My guess would be that it is rare for a student to spend enough time with practice tests and test prep in general without some taskmaster
I think for most kids there’s a natural progression of scores as they advance in school, even without specific prep. I couldn’t get either of my kids to prep at all in high school, much less to take a prep course. The older one first took SAT, however, in middle school for the pre-college program at Northwestern (though he didn’t attend). He did quite well and progressed by junior year to NMSF status. Experience taking the actual test, coupled with aging (more education) probably helped, but “prep”? None.
The younger one also did not prep at all for ACT or SAT and got good scores (ACT 29 iirc). Perfectly adequate for her intentions to go to art school, for which her artistic talent and portfolio were far more critical than maxing out on test scores. However, when, a few years after college graduation she decided to go to business school for an MBA, she prepped by following a Princeton Review self-study program and taking a math course (since she had no math in her art school or afterwards). She knew that a high GMAT was critical for getting into a top 10 business school. She got 720, and into a top 10 business school. Prep can matter in some circumstances.
There are circles and pockets of the country I am guessing where it is commonplace to prep. Where we are I have honestly never known a parent or student who has ever done any prep (outside of the school classroom at least). I would love to spare him the drudgery of it. I get it that it could just be a matter of something inexpensive and online, doing practice tests. Is it worth it for another point or two? If he wants to do it, PSAT for NM would be priority in my mind.
Loukydad, I think that since virtually every student takes “pre” tests of one kind or another, they get a decent read on their likely “real” test scores. After this “pre” stage, they can decide how valuable it might be to them to max out their scores. As I mentioned, my dd only wanted good scores, consistent with her grades in a well rounded high school academic curriculum. She intended to go to art school. She took the real ACT once and the real SAT once. No special prep. She got the scores she needed. That was it; she had other priorities.
For my son, who had a very competitive personality but was NOT a grade grubber, getting high scores was important to him. But he didn’t prep for tests at all. However, he took the tests enough times beginning in middle school to know where he was likely to end up. On some tests, such at Math II, he knew he aced the test before he even got his score. “I got 800,” he declared as he came out of the exam room. “How do you know that?” I asked. “Well, I answered all the questions, and I had time to check my work.” (He got a perfect score.) But he never saw the need to do specific practice or prep for this or any other exam, as long as he felt confident he’d do well. There really was no point in prepping for him.