Current version of SAT near end
WASHINGTON — The current version of the SAT college entrance exam has its final run this weekend, when hundreds of thousands of students nationwide will sit, squirm or stress through the nearly four-hour reading, writing and math test. A new revamped version debuts in March.
Sixteen-year-old Alex Cohen, a junior at the Miami Country Day School in Florida, thinks he’s solid on math, but he’s been studiously cramming on vocabulary words to get ready for the exam.
“I don’t want to study for the new one, so hopefully I’ll do well on this one,” he said.
Alex said his college adviser was worried about students being “guinea pigs” for the new SAT that rolls out March 5 and told him to focus on Saturday’s exam. “There’s a lot of vocabulary on this test so I’ve been trying to memorize as many words as I can per day,” said Alex, who wants to study business and finance in college.
The College Board, the nonprofit organization that owns the SAT, says more than 351,000 students registered to take the Jan. 23 test. That’s a nearly 10 percent increase over the number of students registered for last January’s exam.
Looking ahead to March, College Board says the revamped exam is more representative of what students study in high school and the skills they need to succeed in college and afterward.
The test had last been revised in 2005.
The new makeover focuses less on arcane vocabulary words like “lachrymose” and more on real-world learning and analysis by students.
There also is no longer a penalty for guessing on the redesigned exam, and the essay will be optional. Students who decide not to write an essay would see about 50 minutes shaved off the length of the test.
