Scholastic Assessment Test or SAT is an standardised entrance exam to compare students from different schools and backgrounds for college/university admissions in the United States. Administered by the College Board, SAT is taken by high school juniors and seniors. It tests the student’s literacy, numeracy, writing skills and critical thinking to check their preparedness for college life. SAT provides colleges with one common data point to compare the applicants, alongside their GPA, extracurriculars, classes taken in high school, letters of recommendation, personal essays and interviews.
Structure Of SAT
The SAT is by and large, a multiple-choice test, but some sections require students to provide their own answers. It is divided into two sections – SAT Reading & Writing and Mathematics, along with an optional Essay Writing section. The essay writing score is not a part of the SAT scoring scale of 400-1600 and is graded separately. Students are tested for their analysing and problem-solving skills – to check if they are capable of applying the skills learnt in school in real life too, when they go to college.
| Component | Number of Questions | Time (in minutes) | Scoring Scale |
| SAT Reading and Writing | 54 | 64 (2 modules, 32 min each) | 200-800 |
| Mathematics | 44 | 70 (2 modules, 35 min each) | 200-800 |
| Total | 98 | 134 | 400-1600 |
In this article, we are going to focus on the SAT Reading and Writing section and discuss some tips and tricks to improve your SAT score.
The Purpose Behind SAT Reading And Writing Assessment
The writing test assesses your usage of grammar, punctuation, clarity, effectiveness and structuring of sentences.
The SAT Reading and Writing section tests your ability to comprehend and analyse texts along with testing your knowledge of grammar.
The purpose of testing your reading skills in the SAT reading and writing test is to assess your preparedness and receptivity in reading and interpreting content that you will come across in your college syllabus.
The Purpose Behind SAT Reading And Writing Assessment
- The SAT Reading and Writing section tests your ability to comprehend and analyse texts along with testing your knowledge of grammar.
- The purpose of testing your reading skills in the SAT reading and writing test is to assess your preparedness and receptivity in reading and interpreting content that you will come across in your college syllabus.
- The writing test assesses your usage of grammar, punctuation, clarity, effectiveness and structuring of sentences.
SAT Reading – Let’s Ace It!
The SAT Reading and Writing section is confusing to some as the questions ask for the Best option instead of the Correct option. It’s likely that you will encounter multiple answers that may all seem correct. If you find this section the most confusing or difficult, let us tell you a secret – you are not alone! Remember, everyone is taking the same plunge. Let’s dive in and tackle this together. Here are a few recommended SAT reading strategies –
- How To Read A Passage In A SAT Exam
One of the main SAT reading strategies is to skim the passage first to get a general idea of the passage. Read the first and last sentence of every paragraph, as a lot of information can be gained from their introductory and concluding sentences. Mark the sub-topic next to each paragraph. With the outline created, you can quickly go back to the exact paragraph and get the answer for a particular question later. As a test-taker, it makes you more organised, efficient and saves your time too.
2. Avoid Redundancy
This is a golden rule that you must follow, especially in the grammar section. When a sentence is presented to you, one of the SAT reading strategies is to understand the structure of the sentence well and ask yourself these 5 W questions – Who, Why, What, When and Where. Once you get the gist of the sentence, choose an answer based on the following criteria –
- The answer should retain all important details of the original sentence.
- The answer should eliminate repetition of words or words with similar meanings.
- Use discretion and your experience before following the two rules above as it may not apply to all.
For example –
Original – The small, little kitten was very, very cute.
Revised – The tiny kitten was incredibly cute.
Original – My Dad happily came to pick me up from school with a smile on his face.
Revised 1 – My Dad came to pick me up from school with a smile on his face.
Revised 2 – My Dad happily came to pick me up from school.
3. The More Concise, The Better
What happens when all the options are similar, grammatically correct and all of them contain the same information? One of the most useful SAT test-taking strategies in the SAT Reading and Writing section is that we simply choose the most concise option. For example –
- Luke will go to the mall this weekend with his best friend Otto to buy a pair of football boots.
- Luke will go to the mall this weekend with his best friend Otto because he wants to buy a pair of football boots.
- Luke will go to the mall this weekend with his best friend Otto to buy a pair of football boots that are sold there.
- Luke will definitely go to the mall this weekend with his best friend Otto to buy a pair of football boots.
In such a case where there is not much redundancy either, you should simply go for an option with the least number of words. In this case, we can go for Option a).
4. Go For ‘Word-In-Context’ Questions First
SAT grades are based on the number of correct answers and there is no negative scoring. Tougher and easier questions have the same weightage. Your primary goal should be to improve your SAT score and rack up as many correct answers as you can. Do not waste time getting stuck on difficult questions. In the SAT Reading and Writing section, go for the Word in Context or Vocabulary in Context questions first. These questions test your ability to define a word based on how they are used in a passage. For example –
“The journalist was very tenacious, he ultimately got to the truth.”
In the context of the sentence, tenacious means –
- Cautious
- Intelligent
- Quick
- Persistent
The answer evidently is Option d).
During a time crunch especially, go for these questions first, as you can tackle them without reading the passage. That way, you can get more time for tougher questions later. Even if you don’t score on the tougher ones, you are at least scoring from the easier ones.
5. There Is Only One Correct Answer
This is one piece of information that you must use to your advantage. When two answers seem exactly the same, in all likelihood, they are both wrong! When you fail to understand a question, look through the answer options and try to use this strategy. Eliminate two exactly similar options and increase your chances of getting the right answer to 50%. Use your critical thinking and experience to guess the right answer after that. Let’s see how you can use this technique with an example.
My favourite X-Man is Wolverine. But my brother’s favourite is Cyclops.
- My favourite X-Man is Wolverine, but my brother’s favourite is Cyclops.
- My favourite X-Man is Wolverine – but my brother’s favourite is Cyclops.
- My favourite X-Man is Wolverine; But my brother’s favourite is Cyclops.
- No change
In this example, note that option c) and d) are the same. How is that? If you go back to your SAT grammar rules, you will remember that a semicolon and a period have the same purpose in a given sentence. So you can ignore options c) and d), which leaves you with options a) and b), and now that’s not a difficult one to figure!
6. Pay Attention To Punctuations
Questions based on punctuations are the most common ones in SAT Reading and Writing. One of the most important study techniques for SAT reading is to practise punctuations and their uses. The most commonly seen punctuation questions include questions based on colons, semicolons, periods and dashes.
7. Time Management
During a SAT Reading and Writing test, it’s important to pace yourself and allocate a set time to each passage. You precisely have 1 minute 11 seconds per question in the SAT Reading and Writing section. Skip difficult questions if need be, and go for the easier ones first. Remember that both carry equal weightage. Wasting too much time on difficult questions will not be wise. Go back to the difficult ones later, if need be.
SAT Writing – Master the Art
The Writing Section examines the students’ development and organisation of ideas along with testing the usage of language. The tests are based on four main aspects –
- Command of Evidence
- Words in Context
- Expression of Ideas
- Standard English Conventions
1. Command of Evidence
The questions asked in this section test whether you have understood the purpose of the passage and whether you can add a supporting detail to it – an introduction or a conclusion or any other – to give it more impact. More often than not, they may ask you to include the reason for making the change.
2. Words in Context
In such questions, the concentration is on one word. You may be asked to replace it by a meaningful one or one with a better meaning to go with the flow and idea of a sentence and the passage as a whole.
3. Expression of Ideas
Such questions ask you to revise a sentence to make it more impactful to test whether you are capable of expressing your ideas well. For example, you may have to rearrange the order of sentences or delete a sentence to support an argument.
4. Standard English Conventions
These questions test your ability to apply your knowledge of grammar and punctuation rules. This will include fixing errors in sentences by identifying errors in verb tense, pronoun use, subject-verb agreement, commas etc.
SAT Writing Tips And Strategies
Work on sentence structure. The sentences should be concise, grammatically correct, clear and cohesive. Make do without unnecessary words and phrases. Show your versatility by using simple, compound and complex sentences. One of the basic SAT writing tips is to organise your writing well with an introduction, a body and conclusion. Adopt the following techniques –
- Active reading
- Identify main ideas in passages
- Analyse supporting details
- Understand the questions well
- Focus on keywords
- Consider the context
- Eliminate irrelevant options
- Master the art of inference
Essay Writing in SAT (Optional)
As covered in the beginning of this article, aside from the Reading & Writing and Mathematics sections, students can also take the Essay Writing Test, which is optional. This section requires you to read a passage and write an essay in response to a single prompt about the passage. The essay score is separate from the 400-1600 score and students get a score of 2-8 in three dimensions here – reading, analysis and writing. The students are given an additional 50 minutes and are assessed based on their ability to –
- Understand and analyse the passage well
- Develop, organise and express their ideas effectively
- Support their ideas with evidence from the passage
- Make the essay cohesive and precise
- Observe the conventions of standard written English
Should you take the Essay Writing Test?
This entirely depends on the colleges you are applying to. About 10% of the colleges in the US require the Essay Writing score. For the rest, you have the option to skip the test.
Additional Tips For SAT Reading And Writing Preparation
- Practice makes you perfect. The more you practise, the better you will get at it.
- Take up official practice tests to familiarise with the format and time management.
- Use feedback scores to analyse your weaknesses and learn from your mistakes.
- Seek help from teachers, tutors and peers.
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