The College Board is making some major changes to the SAT in the next couple of years. The changes are most relevant to students currently in ninth grade, or younger. Here’s what you need to know about the “new” SAT.
The changes will go into effect in the spring of 2016. That means this won’t affect you if you’re a current sophomore or junior. Current high school freshmen will be the first to take the new SAT in the spring of their junior year.
The SAT will be returning to its former composite score of 1600 points – with a high score of 800 in Math and a high score of 800 in “Evidence-based Reading and Writing” (this is a new section title). There will still be an essay component, but it will be optional and receive a separate score.
The penalty for incorrect answers will be eliminated. No points will be deducted for incorrect answers.
There will also be some changes to the content of the test to more closely reflect what students are learning in school. For example, the infamously obscure “SAT words” will be replaced with vocabulary that students might be expected to know in a college class.
Remember, these changes will only affect current high school freshmen (and younger students), and only those who choose to take the SAT. For now, there are no major changes planned for the content of the ACT, but they will be introducing a computerized version of the test that students will be able to take starting in the spring of 2015.
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