Methodology
Most test prep programs use a one-size-fits-all approach. Students work their way through simplified content, which is designed so relatively inexperienced tutors can teach the broadest set of subjects to the broadest set of high school kids. These programs are about coverage rather than depth. However, the SAT/ACT preparation method should be tailored to the individual needs of each student, ensuring that they are not just prepared in terms of content but also in how they approach the test itself.
A good tutor will pick and choose which subjects to focus on, but still, a lot of time gets wasted either going over things the student already understands or attempting to explain subjects that the student isn’t ready for yet, just because that’s the next chapter in the book. For a high school student, this uneven approach to test prep can be alternately boring and exceptionally frustrating, with moments of genuine learning in between.
After years of teaching the SAT just like everyone else, I decided to abandon convention and try a radical approach: instead of doing what parents expected me to do—lots of homework and long one-on-one tutoring sessions—I decided to do what was best for my students and their test scores.
Combining the best of group testing and private tutoring
The first thing to let go of was the traditional one-on-one session format. Simply put, it’s just not that effective. Even if the tutor has the most encouraging attitude, it’s just too exhausting and demoralizing for students to be subjected to that kind of critical scrutiny for hours at a time, and it does NOTHING for confidence. Instead, I switched to a 2 hour session format that combines the best parts of group testing with the best elements of private tutoring.
Group testing to replicate the conditions of the test
My approach is to create two separate spaces with two separate purposes. First, there is an online test room, where a group of students simulate the group-testing environment. I supply my students with real SAT and ACT tests and have them complete them section by section, sticking to the time limits, just as they will on test day. Like the actual test environment, the testing room (a Zoom break-out room) is not without distractions. People shuffle their papers. They tap their pens. And intermittently, I purposefully go in and cause distractions. All this prepares the students for the actual day of the test. If they can work through the distractions they encounter here, no sniffly nose or bouncing knee will upset their performance when it really matters. This SAT/ACT preparation method ensures that students are not only prepared academically but mentally as well. By using this SAT/ACT preparation method, they develop the resilience needed to tackle the real test environment confidently.
Private conferences to teach content and testing strategy
After the student has completed a section of the test, I move them to a private Zoom breakout room where we immediately review their work. This break from the test helps them stay focused, improving attention and mental stamina. Second, by addressing problems as they arise rather than hours or days later—as is the case with tutoring programs that emphasize homework—students have a chance to struggle through the questions, just like they will on the day of the test, but then we walk through the problem while it is still fresh in their minds. This is the core of my SAT/ACT preparation method, which ensures that students stay engaged and are able to absorb the material more effectively. The SAT/ACT preparation method that I use allows students to feel confident in their approach to the test, knowing they can immediately address any areas of difficulty. This process is key to my SAT/ACT preparation method, reinforcing learning and test-taking strategies in real time.
Over the course of each 2-hour session, students meet with me for three private, one-on-one conferences (totaling about 20 minutes per student, each session), during which we work through difficult question types, process performance anxiety, build confidence and review test-taking strategies. This unique test prep format of group practice coupled with immediate and focused expert instruction has
Free group practice tests
To ensure my students have an accurate gauge of their progress, I offer full-length, online group practice tests, free of charge. After a few sessions—once he or she has had a chance to internalize some of the things we’ve been working on—I encourage each of my students to sign up for a practice test. This helps the student build mental stamina, a huge advantage when preparing for a high-stakes, four-hour, multiple-choice exam. This also helps reduce testing anxiety through low-stress exposure, making standardized testing nothing but an annoying routine, rather than a looming crisis. Embracing the routine—show up, sit down, do your work—is the best antidote I know for anxiety.
The next time we meet, the student and I go over his or her scores and address any material that posed a problem. Not only does this give the student valuable exposure to actual test-taking stressors and actual tests, but it also gives us plenty of opportunities to identify and then solve the underlying issues that cause students to struggle with standardized testing.
Mindfulness and meditation
There is no greater impediment to big scores on a standardized test than anxiety. In some ways, the thing the SAT and ACT test most effectively is a student’s ability to perform under pressure. This is why even kids with the highest grades, taking the most advanced classes, can still sometimes underperform on material that is comparatively easy when positioned next to the final for APUSH or Calculus BC.
Too many test prep programs focus on teaching students ways to game the exam: “If you see a question that looks like A all you have to do is B.” But strategy and skill building is really only part of the solution. The key is learning how to maintain poise and a positive mental state even in the midst of an intensely stressful and unnatural environment. The clock is ticking. A proctor is pacing the aisle. The kid next to you seems to be finishing the section twice as fast. How do you cope with those stressors?
The answer is mindfulness and positive self-talk. Laying the groundwork for a peaceful mental state can be the difference between a panic attack and a smooth sailing on test day. Bearing this in mind, I help my students unlearn bad mental habits—“I’m not good at this subject.” “The SAT is stupid. Why do I have to take it?” “What if I get a bad score and no colleges accept me?”—silencing the incessant, self-critical inner voice that plagues both adults and high school students alike.
Not only do I use our session time to reshape their mental image, but I also offer free, mindfulness and meditation classes once a week to anyone who is interested.
Students never have enough time. With classes, sports practice, rehearsals, internships, and after school jobs, no high school student wants to take on one more boring and time-consuming obligation by adding test prep to his or her already crazy schedule. And the same goes for parents. With the unending succession of deadlines and hoops to jump through, no parent wants one more occasion for argument or one more extracurricular program to monitor.
But the truth is… preparation is king. Few students can compete in today’s college application arms race without doing some kind of test prep. So the question is this:
What’s the most effective but least painful way to prepare for the SAT/ACT/PSAT ?
After working with students over the past 28 years, I’ve developed a test prep approach with four main functions:
1. Build students’ confidence
To build a student’s confidence, you have to minimize the stress and discouragement that accompanies standardized testing.
Often students have some subject they just can’t wrap their minds around. At some point in their academic lives, they told themselves that they couldn’t do math or they were bad at writing. Those limitations become identities they carry into every classroom. “Who am I? Oh, I’m a bad test-taker.” This kind of thinking becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, causing a problem instead of identifying one.
To address this, we work to expose doubts and fears and to demonstrate that they are much more capable than they realize. On the surface, I may be helping them prepare for a “pointless” standardized test, but ultimately, my goal is to revise their understanding of their own limitations and multiply their confidence.
2. Take the pressure off parents
The high-stakes college application process can be incredibly stressful for the whole family. The best thing I can do to help is take the burden of motivation and planning off parents. To make this possible, I’ve done something pretty radical: I’ve eliminated homework from my test prep program. This means that there’s no need for parents to step in and ensure the homework’s getting done because I assign none [see: No Homework]. Zero. Nada. Zilch. All work is done in session, so as long as the student arrives with a pencil and a calculator, there is nothing to worry about or budget time for.
Lessons from sports psychology
Have you ever started doing something and it just felt right somehow? Mysteriously, your performance capacity has seemed to multiply overnight and suddenly you’re able to run faster/think quicker/perform better than you ever have before. Sports psychologists call this “flow state” or, more colloquially, “getting in The Zone.” As a lifelong athlete and musician, I’ve sought to reach that flow state on the basketball court and at the piano bench, but in my professional life, I’ve also sought to help my students find their flow on the day of the test.
The first step in increasing your chances of getting into the SAT/ACT Zone is changing how you think about yourself and test-taking in general—after all, no one ever got into The Zone by telling themselves that they couldn’t do it—so preparing for flow state performance starts with increasing confidence and retraining your brain to silence nagging self-doubt. While it’s essential to tune out or turn off the negative voices in your head, you also need to get as much practice as you can in order to making the unnatural and traumatizing process of standardized testing into a totally unremarkable part of daily life. With the proper guidance, you can slowly transform something remarkable into something routine, thereby giving you the mental space to find The Zone.
Even the most experienced athletes can’t be certain that they’ll find their flow state during any particular game, but with lots of practice, good mental discipline and a constructive inner voice, they can increase their chances. The same goes for students doing standardized testing.
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Veronica Louise MendozaI can clearly remember Mr. Test Prep’s response when I said, “I’m no good at math and science.” He said, “Don’t think that way! These questions are easy if you think of them as easy. Let me break ‘em down for you…” Ever since then, the ACT has not intimidated me with the daunting math and science sections. His tricks to make sure I didn’t make any “silly” mistakes even increased my scores to near-perfection in the subjects that I was stronger in – reading, writing, and English! Additionally, the group testing environment was insanely helpful in practicing what to expect during test day. Mr. Test Prep’s unpredictable outbursts of songs and people’s sneezing and coughing inevitably allowed me to block out the irrelevant and focus on the test. I also still do his meditations today before a big event or test! They have assisted me greatly in becoming more centered, and have me diving into any task headfirst with steady hands and tranquility.
Not only did Mr. Test Prep increase my confidence in test taking, but he also helped boost my overall determination in conquering whatever may stand in my way – including math and science! The results of Mr. Test Prep’s tutoring are not merely numbers. If you are seeking someone who is more than a tutor – someone who is a role model, friend, and a hilarious mentor, then Mr. Test Prep is for you!
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