438 McGRAW-HILL’S SAT
Lesson 1:Map the SAT Essay Assignment
Consider carefully the issue discussed in the following
passage, and then write an essay that answers the
question posed in the assignment.Our leaders love to tell us that only victory will
do, as if they are imparting great wisdom. They
seek to defeat the enemy, to achieve the goal.
Yet many times a loss, particularly one that is
hard fought, is more valuable than victory. We
cannot live a life full of only victories, nor
should we. The quality of our lives depends as
much on how we manage our losses as on how
we achieve our victories.Quality is much more important than quantity,
but it’s hard to get a great score with fewer than
four paragraphs. This is so because the readers
are looking for structureanddevelopment,which
require good use of paragraphs. Think of your
paragraphs as “stepping-stones” on a journey.
Only two or three stepping-stones don’t make for
much of a journey. Plan to write four well-defined
paragraphs—five if you have enough time.The essay assignment asks you to formulate a
point of view regarding a particular aspect of
human values or behavior. It does not require
you to recall any specificknowledge from your
studies, although you should try to connect
your thesis with your studies. There is never a
“right” or “wrong” answer to the question; that
is, your actual position does not affect your
score. More important (contrary to what a lot
of SAT-prep folks claim), the graders are not
looking for essays that fit a particular formula.
You can use narration, exposition, persuasion,
or argument as long as it is focused on devel-
oping an interesting point of view that answers
the question.Assignment: Can a loss ever be more valuable
than a victory?Write an essay in which you answer
this question and discuss your point of view on this
issue. Support your position logically with examples
from literature, the arts, history, politics, science
and technology, current events, or your experience
or observation.Know What They’re Looking For
Two English teachers who have been trained by the
Educational Testing Service (ETS) will read and
score your essay from 1 (poor) to 6 (outstanding).
They are trained to look for five things:
Interesting, relevant, and consistent point of
view.Do you take a thoughtful and interesting
position on the issue? Do you answer the ques-
tion as it is presented? Do you maintain a con-
sistent point of view?
Good reasoning.Do you define any necessary
terms to make your reasoning clear? Do you
explain the reasons for and implications of
your thesis? Do you acknowledge and address
possible objections to your thesis without sac-
rificing its integrity?
Solid support.Do you give relevant and specific
examples to support your thesis? Do you explain
how these examples support your thesis?
Logical organization.Does every paragraph re-
lateclearly to your thesis? Do you provide logi-
cal transitions between paragraphs? Do you
have a clear introduction and conclusion? Does
the conclusion provide thoughtful commentary
rather than mere repetition of the thesis?
Effective use of language.Do you use effective
and appropriate vocabulary? Do you vary sen-
tence length and structure effectively? Do you
avoid needless repetition? Do you use paral-
lelism, metaphor, personification, or other
rhetorical devices to good effect? Do you use
strong verbs? Do you avoid needlessly abstract
language? Do you avoid cliché?
The readers will not mark you down for
minorspelling or grammar mistakes, and they
won’t mark you up just for using big words. Focus
ongood reasoning. If you can take an interesting
position, explore its implications, discuss relevant
examples that support it, and maintain your
focus, you will get a very good score.How Long Should It Be?The Assignment
Your essay assignment will look something like this: