FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT SAT LESSONS

by Dr. Donnelly

What Is the New SAT and why is it important?
What will a student learn before they take the SAT test?
What will a beginner learn at their first lesson?
What equipment will be needed?
What should you expect from your instructor?

What is the New SAT and why is it important?

If you're getting ready to apply to college, you're probably hearing a lot about various standardized admission test such as the new and improved Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT).

Most selective colleges place considerable importance on your SAT scores as part of their admission process and some also use them to award scholarships.
Tip- If you wish to increase your chances of acceptance to your college of choice it is extremely important that you are fully prepared before taking the SAT.

In March 2005 the new version of the SAT debuted. The exam now last 3 hours and 45 minutes and consist mainly of multiple-choice questions divided into three main sections: the Math section, the Critical Reading section and the Writing section. The latter, also has a 25 minute essay designed to test the student’s writing skills. Each section now receives a score ranging from 200 to 800, hence your overall SAT score will be somewhere between 600 and 2400. Tip- The average student generally scores around 1500.

What will a student learn before they take the SAT test?

In order to be fully prepared for the SAT, students must be familiar with both the structure and content of the exam. Tip- A good tutor will guide you through each section of the exam to ensure that you have the necessary academic foundation in each topic.

The Math section requires knowledge of the basic High School math such as Algebra, Geometry and Trigonometry along with a few relatively advanced topics including Algebra II, Functions, Exponential Growth and Absolute Values.
Tip -See the following link for practice questions & explanations at www.tutorsofoxford.com/SATexamples.htm

The Critical Reading section requires students to answer multiple choice questions based on several short paragraphs. Students are also presented with incomplete sentences and are expected to finish them by selecting the correct word or phrase. Luckily, the dreaded ‘analogy-type’ questions are no longer part of the SAT exam.

The Writing Section now contains an essay that requires students to read an 80-word paragraph that makes a statement or claim. Students are then expected to develop a position and back it up with examples from schoolwork, literature, or their own experience. In addition, this section also contains ‘sentence correction’ and ‘sentence improvement’ based multiple-choice questions.

Tip- The student should also be taught the best examination techniques to ensure that they use the allotted time wisely and avoid making costly mistakes during the test.

What will a beginner learn at their first lesson?

During the initial lesson, the tutor should be able to quickly assess the student's particular strengths and weaknesses in the subject and customizes the lesson plan accordingly. The student will be shown the basic structure of the SAT and will become familiar with its format by practicing numerous past paper questions.

The tutor should then begin to help build the student's confidence in a particular topic by selecting questions at the appropriate academic level and then gradually increasing their difficulty until the concept has been mastered. After all, taking a number of smaller steps is often much easier than taking one giant one.

By the end of the first lesson the student should feel a lot more confident that he or she is now on the right path towards significantly improving their test scores.

What equipment will be needed?

Books and other material.
The following links may be helpful for students interested in finding out more about the SAT:
http://www.tutorsofoxford.com/SATstandardizedtests.htm - General information about the SAT
www.collegeboard.com – information on registering for the SAT
http://www.tutorsofoxford.com/SATexamples.htm- practice SAT questions with answers and explanations
www.Amazon.com-Amazon has a large selection of SAT practice books.

Instructors will generally provide all necessary teaching materials but it is also a good idea for students to bring their own calculator and note books to each lesson.

What should you expect from your instructor?
When selecting a tutor, one should always try to make the decision based on quality rather than solely on price. Below are some of the most important attributes that an excellent instructor should possess.

Firstly, the tutor must have excellent academic qualifications. You would be amazed by how many people are out there offering to teach subjects in which they are not fully qualified. A bad tutor can actually do more harm than good and end up destroying a student's confidence in the subject. Hence, make sure that your tutor has an advanced degree in their chosen subject, preferably from a top university.

Secondly, the instructor must have extensive teaching experience. Just because a person is gifted in a particular subject does not mean he or she can actually teach that subject. An outstanding tutor should have extensive teaching experience at all different levels, in order to be able to clearly explain each concept in a number of different ways.

Thirdly, a good tutor should be able to communicate well with the student and should also provide feedback to parents in the form of weekly progress reports. Homework exercises should also be set at the end of each lesson to reinforce the material covered that week since this will significantly increases the student’s rate of progress.

Finally, the tutor should have a patient professional teaching style that helps build the student’s confidence in the subject and enable him or her to feel comfortable enough to ask questions and make mistakes without feeling self-conscious during the lesson. Hence, the tutor must be patient and pleasant-natured while at the same time encouraging students to take an active part in each lesson. After all, it is much better to make mistakes during a lesson than it is during a final examination.

What do most instructors charge for a private, semi private or group
lessons.

Rates vary greatly depending upon the format of the lesson (group or individual), location and the experience/credentials of the tutor. Individual private lessons can range from $40 per hour to well in excess of $100 per hour, whereas group classes tend to be cheaper.

Although generally more expensive, private lessons can offer many advantages over group classes since each lesson can be customized to meet the student’s particular needs. Many students find concentrating extremely difficult when in a group setting and initially have little or no confidence in their own abilities. These same students often tend to flourish under private one-to-one tuition and are amazed at how quickly they are able to pick up new topics when free from the distractions of the classroom environment.

by Dr. Donnelly
www.tutorsofoxford.com