My D had really bad test anxiety, and struggled with the SAT. Did much better on the ACT (which was ‘easier’ since at that time is was much less reasoning-focused than the SAT.)
All great recommendations above:
Timed practice tests, but in a public place like library (or at a Kaplan/Princeton Review test center)
Psychologist for tips to manage.
And given that he’s taken the SAT 4 times, I;d give the ACT a try. Some kids just do better on one over the other – although the SAT is becoming more ACT-like,
Practice, practice, practice is how you finally ace tests (and get to Carnegie Hall!).
Good luck.
Has your son taken standardized tests as part of his home-schooling experience? I think some states want this (at least if the parent does not have teacher certification). If so, how did he do on them? If you used the same testing companies as the good suburban schools in the Northeast, the percentiles should predict SAT percentiles reasonably reliably. This might be a better predictor than the practice tests.
Students in public school in our area have standardized tests in 3rd, 6th, 8th, and 9th grade (plus reading tests, plus the state tests every year), and then the PSAT, some ACT-type practice test, before they take the SAT or ACT “outside.” So they have a great deal of practice in calming test nerves before they take the SAT or ACT, and even then, they may still deal with a bit of test anxiety.
I agree with the poster who suggested getting the test answer and scoring service. It would be worthwhile to identify what the nature of your son’s difficulty on the “real thing” is. It could be a type of bubbling error, or not entering the non-multiple choice responses in the correct format in the math section.
If your son attends a large university, it is likely that exams in some of the introductory classes will be multiple choice. Some homeschoolers have excellent educations, but very little experience with multiple choice exams. Something to know about multiple choice exams at university level in the physical sciences: the choices are typically computed by the faculty member, taking into account each of the likely errors that a student might make. So, sometimes a student who comes from a high school where the exams were not designed that way will believe he has done the calculations correctly, because his answer shows up as a choice, and in high school that usually meant it was correct. Then he doesn’t realize that he needs to search out possible errors.
That particular scenario is unlikely to be happening with your son, because he is acing the practice tests. But it does sometimes affect students.
It sounds like you probably need to add some relaxation techniques (progressive muscle relaxation, belly breathing, etc) to the test prep. Find out what works for him to re-center himself and work on that as well.
Is there anything in his background that might cause him anxiety with regards to the public school setting? I homeschooled for years, and I know many people that were homeschooling because their child had a very negative experience at public school. Or has he always been homeschooled, but been exposed to “fear mongering” about how bad it would be to be in public school? If this is the case, then anxiety might not be coming from the testing, but rather the setting.
My son was similar on ACT test. Took test 3 times but could not get higher than 21. Did well with tutor and practice tests but just too much anxiety on real test. Does well in school.
Your son might need practice being in the testing room with other students. It’s not just the ticking clock that might bother him or a squeak here or there. It might be the pressure of performing among others–especially if he is home schooled. The presence of others so close by, knowing he is competing with them, may raise his anxiety. It might not be that he is so anxious as to need counseling, it may instead be that he needs the experience of being around others in a high pressure situation. I would sign him up for a group prep class to gain exposure to other students. As others said, I would also try the ACT and go back to the SAT if needed after he has more group test taking experience.
Although this wont help you, for those with anxiety have them take test with little warning, no practice and early in high school so there is no pressure. My eldest never studied and got a 35 superscored. Started with a 32 sophomore year so the pressure was gone. Took again a few months later and got a 34 and a year later for the heck of it. No practice exams, no classes, and no practice books. My younger one got a 32 the beginning of sophmore year doing the same and just took again today a year later. No stress.