Question

Test-preparation organizations like Kaplan, Princeton Review, etc. often advertise their services by claiming that students gain an average of 100 or more points on the Scholastic Achievement Test (SAT). Do you think that taking one of those classes would give a test taker 100 extra points?

Answer 1

Answer:

High school students and their parents are often bombarded with SAT test prep applications as they get closer to the college application process. Exam preparation offers arrive in the mail; they are sent home by schools, and they are not cheap. (The Princeton Review "Ultimate Classroom" course costs $ 1,199 in New York City.) When students take these courses and do not see their scores improve, parents may wonder if their children have studied enough or if they have wasted their money.

Step-by-step explanation:

Previous year, the NACAC released a report concluding that exam preparation courses have minimal impact on improving SAT scores: approximately 10-20 points on average in math and 5-10 points on critical reading. The Association for college administration report also noted that this evidence is "contrary to claims made by many test preparation providers of large increases of 100 points or more on the SAT."

Kathleen Steinberg, a College Board spokeswoman, says that, on average, students who take the SAT twice only "increase their scores by about 30 points."

He further disclose that "The College Panel does not indorse taking the SAT more than twice, as there is no evidence to indicate that taking the test more than twice increases grade performance."

Parents might also be surprised at the actual average SAT scores: 501 in critical reading, 515 in math, and 493 in writing, according to Steinberg. (The highest score you can get in any section is 800).

Kaplan claimed that The Princeton Review's claims for score breaks were based on comparing the results of Princeton Review's "diagnostic" tests with the students' self-reported scores on the actual SAT tests, as opposed to SAT scores previous and after.