<p>i am a 14 year old 9th grader Chinese Canadian currently studying in China. Took the 09-10 SAT practice test downloaded from cb's website and scored: CR: 560 M:660 W: 570. I felt i could score at least 700 in math if i used a calculator, and i could've gotten a little more for both reading and writing. The score makes me suspect that the practice test is easier than the actual test because my scores in school are rather average and the scores i have achieved on this test for high school juniors are according to cb above average. So is the practice test not the real thing?</p>
<p>No, I believe that test was actually administered.</p>
<p>And saying you’re getting at least a 700 is very different from actually getting one. The calculator does not help you.</p>
<p>Yeah they are above average but the US has a pretty low average of like 1500</p>
<p>Only one practice test will not say much either. You could’ve gotten lucky - or the one practice test may have had content that you were more familiar with. Take another practice test and see if the same thing happens. If so, maybe you’re just naturally smart. :)</p>
<p>If you need a calculator for the math portion of the SAT, I doubt you’ll be scoring above 700.</p>
<p>An average of 1500 is not low. It’s average. Remember, the SAT is curved so the fiftieth percentile is 1500.</p>
<p>The 2009-2010 practice was originally given as the January 2006 test- so it is a real released exam and is very indicative of what you would score.</p>
<p>If the practice test is one of those official released collegeboard ones, then they really should be the same, difficulty-wise, as the actual test. They are, as futball1991 posted, copies of previously administered SATs. Relative to your other test(s), if you’re score is plus or minus 60-100 or so points, it’s perfectly normal. </p>
<p>However, you should be mindful of the fact that being placed under actual testing conditions can make the test seem more difficult, or influence your performance. On the practices (CB website released and blue book tests), I would score within a certain range…then on test day, I scored about 100 points lower than my mean practice SAT score. And the same goes for many people I know; I personally know a few people who took two consecutive SATs and both times scored lower than on practices (though they weren’t HUGE differences, but still).</p>
<p>Of course, this may not be the case for you. In any case, It’s best to anticipate the possibility scoring ~100 points lower than usual on your actual test. Then, leave yourself a safety net by aiming to score about 100 points over your target on practices. Good luck.</p>
<p>thanks for the replies!</p>
<p>i was wondering, why doesn’t college board release more practice tests for us to do if they are just actual tests from the past? or if they do, how can i get hold of them?</p>
<p>Also, questions about improvement. Take in the factor that i have 2 years to practice for the sat, about how much improvement i should expect?</p>
<p>edit: i forgot, is the sat question of the day easier than the actual test questions? i get over 95% of them right.</p>
<p>yes, sat questions of the day are usually composed of the easiest SAT questions.
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-preparation/757034-college-board-sat-test-links.html?highlight=official+practice+test[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-preparation/757034-college-board-sat-test-links.html?highlight=official+practice+test</a> - here you’ll find 2 more official practice tests.
About improvement: definitely 2400( If you put some effort in your preparation).
You may want to read this thread:<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-preparation/763933-new-feature-best-sat-prep-forum-faqs-please-read-before-posting.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/sat-preparation/763933-new-feature-best-sat-prep-forum-faqs-please-read-before-posting.html</a> Most of the tips here are very helpful.
And dont forget to buy the Blue Book.</p>