Time to register for the SAT and ACT

Parents, it's time to register for the next SAT and ACT.  Registration is open and the best test sites can fill up quickly.

Here are some factors to consider in selecting a test location.

1. Is the test site convenient?  How long does it take travel to it?  What is the parking situation at the site?.  If the test site is a large high school or college campus, does your child know how to find his/her way to the testing location?
2. How large are the classrooms where the students test?  How many students will be in each classroom.  I usually prefer that students select the smaller venues since there are usually less distractions.  
3. Have any of your friends taken a test there before?  Talk to them and find out what their experience was like.

Fall SAT dates:  October 11, November 8, and December 6.  Go to www.collegeboard.com for more info and to register.

Fall ACT dates:  September 13, October 25, and December 13.  Go to www.actstudent.org for more info and to register.

Both the College Board and the ACT have prep material available online.  Here are links to their materials:

http://sat.collegeboard.org/practice

http://www.actstudent.org/testprep

Also, I will be teaching classes for both the SAT and ACT this Fall.  My next ACT class begins on August 11th and my next SAT class begins on September 2nd.  Visit my website for more information,  www.knowledgeguides.net

The Redesign of the SAT and How to be Prepared

According to the College Board, the SAT will be redesigned in 2016.  This new version of the test will first be administered in March 2016.  However, the new version of the PSAT will appear in October, 2015. 

Current 9^th graders will be the first to be affected by these changes since they will be juniors in 2015 and take the PSAT in the Fall of 2015 and the SAT in the Spring of 2016.  However, these students will have options.  One option will be for them to take the current version of the SAT in the Fall of 2015 or even as late as January 2016(anticipated).  Then, take the new version of the test and see which score is better.  In all likelihood the vast majority of colleges will still accept the old version of the test.  This is how it worked the last time the College Board introduced a new version of the test in 2005.  

Another option for these students(current 9^th graders, class of 2017) will be to opt for the ACT if they can score better on it.

Current 10^th graders will be seniors in March, 2016 and would not take the new tests in most cases.  They should have all their testing done by this time.

Here is a link to information on some of the changes to the test:  http://chronicle.com/blogs/headcount/college-board-unveils-sample-sat-items/38179

Here is a link to information from the College Board on the new test:  https://www.collegeboard.org/delivering-opportunity/sat?affiliateId=satsite&bannerId=rsat-hp

James Pipkin

Knowledge Guides Prep

www.knowledgeguides.net

Summer Learning Opportunities for Kids

By James Pipkin

Arlington and the surrounding area offer many outstanding Summer learning activities for kids.  Summer is a great time for kids to brush up on a skill or get ahead so that they are ready for the upcoming school-year.  This can be done by enrolling your child in a course, teaching them yourself, or by hiring a tutor.

Summer Classes

Several schools and colleges in the area have Summer courses.  For example, one of the best Summer programs is the Summer in the Oaks Programs at the Oakridge School in Arlington.   In this program, students can take a course in algebra or geometry,  work on their writing skills, or take an SAT Class.  Another popular course teaches kids how to improve their study skills.  In addition, there are recreational courses in which students learn how to fish or how to bake.  There’s even a class for kids to learn about CSI techniques.

To find out more about the Oakridge Summer in the Oaks Course, please visit: 

http://www.theoakridgeschool.org/summerprograms

UTA also has Summer programs through their Continuing Education Division.  UTA has both academic and recreational programs for elementary students and test prep for high school students.  

To find out more, visit:  https://www.uta.edu/wconnect/ShowSchedule.awp?~~GROUP~yopsum

TCU also has a well-known Summer reading program with classes for ages.  Visit the following link to find out more:  http://tcu.readingprograms.org/

Tutoring Programs

One of the best ways to improve a specific skill in the Summer is through individual tutoring.    A tutoring program can address a lingering skill deficiency or help a child master a subject.  A qualified tutor will be able to select the right materials for you to use and recommend a program that will work best for you.  To find a good tutor, ask your friends for referrals.

James Pipkin coaches high school students on how to raise their SAT and ACT scores. James is author of “The Parent’s Guide to the SAT and ACT” and owner of Knowledge Guides, a test-prep center based in Arlington.

James Pipkin
Knowledge Guides Prep
817-451-6200
www.knowledgeguides.net

SAT® or ACT®: Which Test Should Your Child Take?

Excerpt from The Parent’s Guide to the SAT and ACT by James Pipkin, 2007

Many parents come to a crossroads regarding which admissions test would be best for their child. Many stick with the test that is more prevalent among colleges in their area. For example, the ACT is more prevalent in Oklahoma and Arkansas, whereas the SAT is more popular in Texas. Surprisingly, this is not because colleges in these places exclusively require one test or the

other. In fact, I do not know of a single school in any of these three states that exclusively requires either test. Therefore, students should choose according to what is best for them.

The best approach for nearly every student is to take both. A student may elect not to send the scores to schools from any test until he or she is ready. For example, say a student plans to take both tests during the spring of their junior year but is not sure how they will do. They can decide not to send the scores to any colleges until they find out how they did. There is an additional fee but it might be worth it just to relieve some of the pressure. If they like their, scores they can go ahead and have them sent to the colleges to which they are applying or they can decide to take either test again and then send the scores. When colleges receive the scores, the last six scores

will show up on the SAT. (I am not sure of this practice with the ACT.)

Another reason to take both is that some students may do better on one test than the other. This may depend on a student having skills that are better suited to one test more than the other. For example, some students who have strong vocabularies have an advantage on the SAT because of the sentence completion questions, which require you to pick which word fits in the blank in a sentence. Likewise, students who know all the key math formulae have an edge on the ACT because these useful formulae are not included in the test instructions; students must know them. In contrast, these formulae are present as part of the SAT instructions so students do not have to know or memorize them.

Sometimes a student may feel more comfortable with the nature and design of one test over the other. I had a student last year who did well on the ACT math section but poorly on the SAT math section. This difference appeared consistently on both real and practice tests. She was above the 60^th percentile on the ACT math section and around the 40th percentile on the SAT math section. The only explanation I could come up with was that the layout of the ACT fit her better. Taking both tests will give the student feedback that he or she can use to decide if another test is a good idea and which test on which to focus their preparation. If the student does considerably better on one test, they should probably study for and take that test again.

James Pipkin coaches high school students on how to raise their SAT and ACT scores. James is author of “The Parent’s Guide to the SAT and ACT” and owner of Knowledge Guides, a test-prep center based in Arlington.


James Pipkinwww.knowledgeguides.net

Do kids get enough homework?

Do kids in junior high and high school get enough homework, or too much?  The opinions vary widely depending on which parent you ask.  Parents of kids who are active in sports or other extracurricular activities sometimes feel that teachers give too much homework.  However, some of the same kids who play sports or are involved in other extracurricular activities are some of the best students because they have the skills needed to manage their limited time and get their schoolwork done.  Some parents feel that enough time is set aside during to school day to get the work done, and the kids should not be given any extra.

A parent’s opinion of homework may also depend whether or not their child is in pre-AP or AP classes.  These honors classes typically demand a lot of outside homework so kids who take them sometimes lack for free time during the week.  I have observed over the years that kids in honors classes or private school tend to get more homework than kids in regulars classes at public school.  This concerns me though because many of the kids in regulars classes at public school are in the recommended degree plan and plan to go to college.

I know kids in regulars classes get some homework, and some may get more depending on the teacher.  I am just not convinced that they get enough.  I have tutored many kids over the years who could’ve benefited from more homework.   In college, students have to be disciplined enough to study on their own each day, plan and write research papers, and complete projects and assignments for different types of courses.  For students who have never an adequate amount of homework and assignments that they have to do on their own, this is difficult.

What do I think can be done about this?  I suggest that, if you are concerned that your child doesn’t get enough homework, you start a constructive dialog with your child’s teacher or school.  Get their point of view.  Maybe they already have a plan for this. 

Please feel free to share your thoughts on this issue, whether you agree or disagree.  I would like to know how some of you parents feel about whether your child gets enough homework.