SAT
SAT Basics
The Old SAT
Originally the SAT stood for Scholastic Aptitude Test and was first developed in 1926. Also known as the Scholastic Assessment Test, it is most widely known simply as the SAT. It used to have the unfavorable reputation of being and objective and “untouchable†test, but nowadays the SAT is a $100 million-a-year business. The old SAT had only two sections, math and verbal, and was scored out of 1600, with each section accounting for 800 possible points. The old version will be outmoded entirely in 2007.
The New SAT
The recently revamped SAT is also known as the SAT II. There are numerous changes that have been made to the new SAT test aside from the new writing section:
- There are multiple choice questions for the grammar section of “Critical Reading,†which used to be called the writing section.
- Now there are ten sections tested on with the SAT: 3 math sections, 3 verbal sections, 3 sections of critical reading and 1 experimental section.
- Algebra and short reading passages now replace analogies and quantitative comparisons. For 2006, some schools allow you to choose the old SAT or the new SAT (SAT II). The sections that are scored are writing, math and verbal, but the experimental section is not. The experimental section is accessed by the College Board in order to determine what questions may be good to include on future SAT tests. The test does not clearly state which section is experimental, so do your best on each one.
Other formats used on the SAT are quantitative comparisons, sentence completions, and multiple-choice. Your score will range on a scale of 200 to 800 for both sections, with 2400 being a perfect score. A score of 600 on the verbal section is only reached by less than 10% of all test takers, and the math section is also exceptionally tough, with even less scoring higher than 600. 1500 is the average SAT score. For years the SAT has been used as the standard college entrance exam, but in recent years, The ACT has become as popular in use as the SAT.