March 7, 2022
By Carolyne Mooney
Editor
During lunch on Mondays through Thursdays, junior Yara Haidar rushes to her SAT preparation classes offered free to juniors. This is a significant time commitment, but Haidar said it is worth it in order to get a good score on her college entrance exam.
Haidar will be taking the three-hour-long test on March 12 at LHS. Currently, the SAT is a paper assessment completed with a No. 2 pencil, but that will soon change.
On Jan. 25, the College Board announced that beginning in 2024, American students will be taking the SAT on a digital platform. Therefore, students will take the test on laptops or tablets. The length of the test will also change. Instead of three hours, the test will take two hours with an addition of a calculator for the math section and shortened reading passages. These changes will be implemented internationally in 2023.
Although Haidar will not be impacted by these changes, she said she views them positively.
“The new format will provide relief because younger generations are more used to technology. The [reduced testing] time also makes a huge difference,” Haidar said. “Having to sit down and take a test for three hours is exhausting. It won’t be as dreadful to take now that it is shortened.”
Haidar said her only concern is that she believes the math section will include more difficult questions since a calculator will be available the whole time.
She said scoring well on the SAT is important because it helps students gain acceptance into more selective colleges and access scholarships.
“Some of the techniques I teach students involve them underlining, circling and annotating words on the paper test. I also teach them to draw a big star in the booklet for questions they would like to return to. These techniques will not be possible when the test is online.”
“I plan to apply to Rutgers’ nursing program, which can be competitive, and scoring well on the SAT would increase my chances of getting in,” Haidar said.
English teacher Dr. DiMaggio, who leads a lunchtime SAT prep course with math teacher Ms. Fernandez, said she would prefer if the assessment remained on paper.
“The test being shorter could be beneficial, but not being able to annotate or return to questions could be detrimental,” DiMaggio said. “Some of the techniques I teach students involve them underlining, circling and annotating words on the paper test. I also teach them to draw a big star in the booklet for questions they would like to return to. These techniques will not be possible when the test is online.”
DiMaggio said even after the test goes digital, SAT preparation will still be necessary, but the testing techniques will change.
“I will have to see the new format of the test to see how my techniques will change to match the test. The SAT has undergone changes a few times through the years, and I just adjust my techniques to match the test,” DiMaggio said.
Sophomore Michael Rizzo said the digital test would be more practical, though he would prefer to take the SAT on paper.
“The test being shorter could be beneficial as less information may be [included]. This could also mean more information would be crammed,” Rizzo said.
He said the SAT can be nerve-wracking for students.
“It makes me anxious because of how important it is, and the new format doesn’t change that, [but] it will make the writing sections easier,” Rizzo said.
He said he plans on taking the SAT during his junior year.
“I have not started preparing for the SAT, but am trying to retain information learned in English and math classes,” Rizzo said. “I am hoping to do [well] on the SAT to further my chance to get into a better college.”
