THE SHAPE OF THE TEST
The Math Test is broken down into two sections: one 55- minute section with a
calculator, and one 25-minute section with no calculator. Again, there is no
penalty for a wrong answer, so you MUST GUESS if you don’t know the
answer. Your raw score (the number you answered correctly) will be compared
to all of the other raw scores on your test date to create your final score, which is
out of 800. Additional subscores (namely Heart of Algebra, Problem Solving
and Data Analysis, and Passport to Advanced Math) will be available, but that
final score out of 800 is the number that matters to colleges, and hence to you.
Both sections of the test will begin with easier questions, then get harder.
All the questions will be pulled from four loosely defined content areas: the
above-mentioned Problem Solving and Data Analysis (word problems and
statistics and charts); Heart of Algebra (variables, equations, and their graphs);
Passport to Advanced Math (quadratic and exponential equations, functions);
and Additional Topics (geometry and coordinate geometry, plus a few scary
leftovers like imaginary numbers and cosines). We have organized our math
chapter to follow these groupings.
Don’t let the word “easier” make you too relaxed. I once missed the first problem of the math section because I thought 24 divided by 4was 8.
—Samantha
HOW IS THIS DIFFERENT FROM THE OLD SAT?
Those of you who have never seen an SAT before or have only seen one post–
March 2016 can skip this part. Cruise right on over to Mental Math Tricks on the
next page.
However, those of you who have already taken an SAT or PSAT before
March 2016, or those of you who are regular subscribers to History of
Standardized Tests Magazine, need to know that the current SAT Math Test is a
new test. So what’s new?
Well, there’s the official answer, and then there’s the real answer. The official
answer is that not too much has changed in the Math Test. There is a larger focus
on algebra, a few new topics (such as complex numbers and margins of error),
and a new section in which calculators are forbidden. The real answer is that a
lot has changed. There is a much greater focus on algebra (and less on
geometry), statistics, and the interpretation of graphs and charts, as well as
evaluating data samples and making inferences based on that data. A quick flip