I have 3 weeks until I will retake my sat . Last time I got 1450 with 650 on ebrw and I got 18 (18 !!!) Wrong on the reading section . Almost all of them were on history/social sciences paragraphs . On science and literature I usually have 0/2 wrong answers , but on the others I make over 5 on each paragraph . After reading a H/SS paragraph I feel like I have just read random sentences . I understand individual words and sentences but nothing more . I have just finished 3 such paragraphs and got more than half of questions wrong and I just cannot take it anymore . If this happens again and again I will take the sat while having a mental breakdown . Please help , just tell me what could I do or what have you done … ( I am an international student so I barely know anything about Us history )
There are a lot of tips online if you search for “SAT Reading Tips.” Universities usually understand and expect that an international student will have a lower reading score than an American student, and are likely to look more at your quantitative score to evaluate your abilities, especially if you are applying for a STEM major.
You are not expected to “know anything about US history” to be able to read the passages. It is testing your reading ability, not your knowledge of US history.
While practicing, try reading the questions first before reading the passages, and see if you can find the answers to the questions as you read along. This strategy is helpful for some people.
I hope you realize that if you struggle with understanding these passages so much, then you might very well struggle with successfully attending a university where all of your courses will be in English. The struggles with reading comprehension will not end with the SAT.
mommyrocks , thanks for advice . I am actually reading a lot in english , but the books are all about science or math and I have no problem understanding them . Even more ! I took the toefl and I got 111/120 with 30/30 on the reading section (mainly because there are few to none passages about us history ) .
Also , I know that I can answer all the questions without knowing anything about the passage , but it is undeniable easier when you have background information about the ideas presented in the text . When I see words like "virtual particles" or "sunspots" I already know what the text will be about , and I can finish reading it in about 2 minutes and still answer all the question correct.
Anyway , I’ll try new tehniques for history/social science passage and hope to improve my score .
This is the same for me. I score considerably lower in the history passage(s) mainly because I have no interest in US history. One thing I’ve learned is that while reading, your mindset is very important. If you see a history passage and immediately think you’ll get all the answers wrong, you will!
My advice is to have a positive mindset and just know that the passage is no different than other texts you read, even if it’s on an unfamiliar topic.