@ak2018 I’m thinking I might take the SAT in the fall of junior year so that I’ll have all the stuff I practiced this summer fresh in my mind instead of waiting till the spring like the general track dictates.
@wildguy57 It’s a summer program that takes about 60 kids and places them at either UM. Cornell, or Indiana University. Each location has a different seminar topic. I don’t know much yet, but it’s supposed to be like an semi-autonomous community where everyone makes up the rules and governs themselves. They give the entire TASS group a budget and we get to decide how to use it. I’m looking forward to the independence, but I also feel like the caged bird who doesn’t want to make its way to the outside world after its been “freed.”
@KG5APR Thanks!!
To anyone who has decided/or is deciding to study SAT with Khan Academy, here is my experience after my first scheduled practice test:
Info: I just took my 1st out of 4 practice tests today. They scheduled it so that I would take a test 2 days after starting the training.
Background: Didn’t do so well on PSAT (October of 2015 test), so I was hoping that the hardcore two day training (I selected to go through with the hardcore option on Khan Academy) I did before my practice test (the one I just completed) would pay off.
During test: Feeling better than I did during PSAT
After Test: I was going to close my eyes before I got my score, but it popped in front of my eyes super quickly.
About my score: I’m not going to write the score that I received for two reasons. 1) I think that my score should remain “private” (I use quotations because I am going write about little pieces of my score, but not my overall), and 2) I can Improve A LOT more, so I don’t want to over exaggerate anything.
Anyways… I improved in ALL areas, and improved my overall by 100 points!
My hope by next PSAT: Improve even more, and I think Khan Academy will do a great job helping me with that!
Hopefully this helped someone or gave someone a bit more insight.
Are you guys studying for SAT and ACT simultaneously or how are you going to prep for ACt. Does khan academy you help out with ACT as well?
@snowfairy137 After all of this practice, I feel like I just might take one in the fall as well. I’ll probably do it this earliest I can so the stuff can be fresh in mind as well. I literally just finished my first day of SAT test prep and I have to say that it was a lot better than I’d expected. When I was doing math practice, I started out with getting 5/10 of them correct, and now I’m getting 7/10 of them correct. On the reading and writing sections, I’m consistently getting 7/11 of them right. I honestly feel so confident now. Like I’ll actually be able to get a good score, if I keep working this hard. Since October, I’ve literally thought I was never going to improve more than 100 points on the PSAT, but with this, I feel so capable.
@wildguy57 I’m just focusing on the SAT for now because the practice is so readily available and I want to get national merit. I don’t know if I’ll even do the ACT.
@apple1893 Thank you for posting that. That post, along with how things went today on Khan Academy, are giving me the enthusiasm and strength to continue!
@wildguy57 I’m studying for both. I’m pretty sure Khan Academy doesn’t really help as much for the ACT, as the ACT has larger time constraints, but you could easily get an ACT prep book from your local library or look online for free practice.
@ak2018 Yea no problem. I remember after the PSAT, when everyone was sharing scores, we had very similar scores. So at least you know someone with similar strengths as you was able to increase their score. I think I’ll take the SAT after my PSAT.
I’ve been freaking out about the SAT and ACT lately because I guess you could say I’m putting a lot of pressure on myself to succeed, once again. I’m not even one full day of school, and I’m already starting my summer reading assignment, starting my other summer reading assignment for AP Chemistry, and doing SAT/ACT prep. Ever since I got my PSAT in January, I’ve beat myself up about it saying I could do better. Heck, even my dad said I could do better. My scores were:
Whole Test Score: 990/1520
Math Test Score: 480
Reading/Writing Score: 510
In all honesty, a lot of people at school really didn’t care about the PSAT and got lower scores than me. But some did get a higher score, but I really shouldn’t compare myself to other. But the thing that messed me up the most strangely was taking my English teacher’s advice about the guessing penalty. My English teacher had thought the old guessing penalty was still in place for the new PSAT, when it really wasn’t. The new guessing policy states that now there is no guessing policy and all incorrect answers take no points away from your score. If I had figured this out, my score would’ve been at least 100 points higher. Instead, I ended up omitting a bunch of the questions. I just spent too much time on certain questions and lost track of time.
Here’s a breakdown of my scores, you’ll see what I mean:
Reading
My Score: 25/38
Total Questions: 47
Total Number of Correct Questions: 23
Total Number of Incorrect Questions: 8
Total Number of Omitted Questions: 16
Writing
My Score: 26/38
Total Questions: 44
Total Number of Correct Questions: 27
Total Number of Incorrect Questions: 5
Total Number of Omitted Questions: 12
Math
My Score: 24/38
Calculator Portion
Total Questions: 31
Total Number of Correct Questions: 14
Total Number of Incorrect Questions: 1
Total Number of Omitted Questions: 16
No Calculator Portion
Total Questions: 17
Total Number of Correct Questions: 4
Total Number of Incorrect Questions: 5
Total Number of Omitted Questions: 8
@ak2018 Why did you omit so many? Did you run out of time or were you unsure of some of the content? (Based on what you put, I will make a suggestion)
@KG5APR I ran out of time. I spent too much time on certain questions. I would’ve guessed on all of the omitted questions, if I knew there wasn’t a guessing penalty. I’m kind of terrible with time management, especially when it’s a timed-test. I just feel a lot of pressure on me once I hear that a test is timed. I’ve had to deal with this problem ever since my first timed-tests back in the second grade. I could never finish those 45 multiplication problems in under a minute! :((
@ak2018 Try a test without timing it and see how you do. Once you get a hang of the question types and can do them un-timed, try setting a time limit about 1-1/2 to 1-1/4 the time of the test. As you get more used to the content, you will increase speed and therefore can shorten the time frame until you are completing the sections in under the time limit.
Thanks, I’ll try that next time! @KG5APR
I literally just got a text back from the friend who’s having a pool party and she said it’s still on for tomorrow afternoon and I’m welcome to come. Looks like I’m going to a pool party! 
@ak2018 Awesome! Have fun! 
@ak2018 That’s great!
I signed up to volunteer at a coding/engineering summer camp. Free practice for AP Comp Sci. 
So when I took my practice test on Khan academy I noticed how I did better as the passages got more difficult for some reason. I made so many careless mistakes on the easier passages in the reading section
Happy Father’s Day to all of the Fathers Here or Not, Dead or Alive!
I’m about to go to the pool party. I literally just woke up 45 minutes ago and haven’t done my work, but screw it!