<p>My first bout with the SAT was the practice PSAT I got sophomore year. I don't remember what I scored then but my PSAT score for math and verbal was 130. Most of the rest of my overachieving hang out group scored in the 110s which prompted them to sign up for prep classes. I couldn't even begin to afford them so I never gave them a thought. All I could get my dad to buy was Up Your Score which was a nice read and made me feel I could get a significant jump in my score. I took the SAT for the first time in October of my junior year. I took one practice test spread over a week(all my practice tests were the annual ones CB gives to counselors). My score was a 1340 so I figured that was about my average. Ironically, I was still 100+ points higher than my test prep friends. I got my PSAT score back, from another administration in October, in January and it was a wonderful 140, which at that point was the highest score I had ever gotten in any practice/real test I took. I wanted a few more points for the SAT so I took it again in February preceded by a promising 1380 on a practice test(the January one was delayed so this was about the last administration of the old SAT). The score came back quickly and my eyes went wide: a 1480. Suddenly I was in the middle of some ivy leagues' scorers. That really perplexed the test prep people. I was very satisfied. I might have been lucky but I was loving that score. </p>
<p>I thought that was it. Unfortunately, with the last 1600 SAT went the last SATII writing which was required by many colleges. So I have at it again in June with a strong fear my score would drop. My math score had dropped ten points but my verbal went up 50. My score had reached a level few (regardless of how many people you've met on CC who have this claim) people ever achieve. </p>
<p>Long story, huh? My real point is I do not see the value of SAT classes. They've stolen quite a few good weekends from my friends who saw some improvement but reel at my improvements. My best explanation for my scores is excellent practice of math and language skills in my chemistry, pre-cal, and English classes my junior year. My friends were in these same classes but they never saw any value in the way the teachers taught (particularly English which they consider a BS subject). Isn't this what the CB website suggests? Take challenging classes to improve your skills. So can't you save yourself the trouble and work hard in your classes than make another SAT prep instructor richer? My friends are finally able to compete with my math score (a couple have even gotten 800s which I've yet to do) but their verbal scores are still abysmally lower. </p>
<p>If you could come up with another explanation to my jump in scores, 1340 to 1480 being the primary jump if we don't consider the 1520 from the New SAT, I'd welcome the discussion. It's a taboo topic in my hang out group. One particular person who spent his snow days taking practice tests feels offended at the mention of his verbal scores.</p>
<p>I agree that SAT study classes are a waste of time, self study is usually the greatest method. I know several people who took the class and got a 1400 (on the 2400 SAT by the way). I also agree that taking harder classes generally helps your score, that is why the majority of people with 4.5 GPAs have very high scores. Also, age and maturity is certainly a factor, a minor one, but one neverless. It's usually best to take it at the end, or towards the end, of your junior year. </p>
<p>Your score could have gone up for many reasons, can't really tell you why though, that is the mystery of the SATs ^_^
SATs are inaccurate, so it's no suprise that you got a different score.</p>
<p>I got a 1720 the first time I took it and got a 2220 the second time, don't really know why either. 500+</p>
<p>If you think you can do better, retake it, other than that, be happy with your score and don't question it!!!</p>
<p>Wow, a 1720 to a 2200, that's amazing. Good job! How did you manage it? Most people improve by 100 or so points, but it's said that even that is rare.</p>
<p>Magic?
I agree, SAT classes seem pointless now, but they helped the first time I took the test. Of course, I outgrew some of the babyish techniques (reading part of a passage, etc) while becoming a senior. Anyway, I don't really see a point to this thread besides showing off...(Yes; I'm partially jealous, but stil...)</p>
<p>I'd rather this not be a show off topic so I'll refocus. SAT classes do improve many students' scores, they did improve my friends' scores. I don't believe my score went up by magic. In the four months separating my first and second attempt, I had this thorough regrounding in english and more math work than I had ever done before. My friends were in these same classes. I argue that instead of losing sleep over their SAT classes, they should have focused on what was more readily available. GPA might not be relevant. They do have higher GPAs than I do. You could make it a predictor of actual scores rather than improvement of scores. </p>
<p>A host of lurking factors might render my argument useless. Possibly, people go to schools where the quality of their classes is low. Or a person never signed up for those classes so a prep class would be appropriate. I'd like to see such discussion.</p>
<p>Yeah I am doing the same. When I realized that I am taking the SAT soon (a few months) I started to try harder in my classes. I would pay more attention and put much more effort into it. Instead of saying ok whatever, I would say, I should try harder because this could help me on the SAT's. It doesn't hurt to take classes but I think you should also get an SAT book and do some studying on your own time. That is probably the reason why you got so much better, you tried harder and took it more serious.</p>
<p>Whether or not you can improve with SAT classes/tutoring depends on the quality of the course and instructor and the amount of personal drive and effort you put into the undertaking. Your score increase makes a good story, but it's also dangerous for others to conclude that one can raise his scores significantly with very little effort. The SAT simply does not work that way. The test has a reliability coefficient in the .90s (meaning that most people who take the test multiple times under the same conditions should get about the same score), and the average increase in re-taking the test is perhaps about 10-15 points per section. Your case is an exception, rather than the rule. For each student who raises his score from a 1340 to 1480 without much test-specific studying in the interim, there are about 10 others who get no higher than a 1370 (or even drop in the score) on a re-taking.</p>
<p>I agree that taking rigorous classes can boost one's SAT scores. But so can the right kind of SAT instruction. My students routinely raise their SAT scores by 300-500 points on the new SAT, with the best ones improving by 600 points or more. With that said, there are TONS of classes or tutors out there who really don't deliver the goods. If you REALLY want to measure yourself against your friends, ask them what their composite increases were in their classes. If they improved their scores by 250 points or more combined, they actually performed better than you.</p>
<p>Congratulations on your 1520. But let's not spread the misleading message that anyone can raise her score dramatically without significant study or preparation. Perhaps if you actually got good SAT tutoring, you could have scored 1550+ (CR+M). I guess we'll never know.</p>
<p>i beg to differ with those who say that prep classes are useless... i've been taking them for a while now (like since freshman year in hs, now a junior). i definitely feel that the tutoring helped too. i learned special tricks (that actually work) and had someone who told me about common errors, etc.</p>
<p>and here i am, with a 2080 and 800 on math.</p>
<p>and by the way, i don't mean to disagree 100%... i definitely think that outside, independent work is just as helpful as tutoring and NECESSARY for success.</p>
<p>studying independently and taking classes will not simply help you "twice as much" than if you did only one of the two. when used in conjunction, they will help your score exponentially.</p>
<p>I've never taken a prep class, and I don't think they are actually worth it. I preped on my own for about a week before the test and got a 2100 on my first try.</p>
<p>It's not your actual score that matters, but how much you could have potentially improved by that determines the effectiveness of a particular preparation method (or lack thereof). In your case, how do you know that your potential was not much higher (say, a 2300) and that you could have realized it with more preparation or study? You're assuming that you must have started out at a much lower score (say, a 1900) and that this one week of study helped magically raise your score by 200 points when in fact it could have done absolutely nothing for your score (i.e., 2100 is your "starting score").</p>
<p>So much depends on the individual & WHY you got the scores you did. My son has been very consistent in his scores & REFUSED to take the SAT prep because he (& we) are convinced that any errors he makes on his tests are due to careless mistakes & differences in opinion about what the best answers should be & being able to write an essay that the testers like in a short enough time period.
My son has gotten consistent high scores on his tests from 7th grade through his senior year. He's taken the PSAT & SAT & ACT & done well in all of them. Most of his friends took the SAT prep course--got lower than him before & after the class. He has also taken the most challenging courses & has looked over his answers & tried to figure out why his answers differed from the "official" answers, to understand the "tricky" questions.
My friend's son really boosted his scores by taking the SAT prep course & boning up on his vocabulary & learning from the teacher how to spot & analyze the tricky questions. We're all different--my sister sent each of her 3 kids to different SAT prep courses & doesn't think any of them helped but was afraid NOT to send them (all their peers went too).
I guess everyone needs to know themselves & whether they will study better independently or if they take a review course & then try to find the review course that best meets their needs. Some folks have found a tutor to help them in the specific subject area they want to strengthen helps more than any course.</p>
<p>You have great points Godot. Your students' successes are also amazing. I would have to conclude my friends did not receive good SAT preparation. Their score inreases are comparable to mine, about 140 - 180, most of it in the Math section. I would attribute that to learning how to get past tricks. Their Critical Reading scores still lacked much improvement, however. </p>
<p>You bring up a good point about whether SAT tutoring could have helped me even more. It may have but I really think at a 1520 where I needed 1 more question in Math and 3 in Critical Reading for the traditional 1600, it was about a coinflip chance that I could have gotten 1550+. </p>
<p>But most of your points are valid. It convinced me actually to move from a direct criticism of all SAT classes to simply defending the value of highschool classes and being wary of possible low quality SAT classes. There's danger in believing highschool classes magically help you, but it's equally dangerous to believe a prep course will help you. It's certainly a stab at one's wallet if little is gained from them.</p>