ORDER OF DIFFICULTY
SAT Subject Test: Mathematics questions are arranged in order of difficulty.
The questions generally get harder as you work through different parts of a
test. This pattern can work to your benefit. Try to be aware of where you are in
a test. Be careful though. A few hard questions may appear early, a few easy
ones late.
When working on more basic problems, you can generally trust your first
impulse—the obvious answer is likely to be correct. As you get to the end of a
test section, you need to be a bit more suspicious. Now the answers probably
won’t come as quickly and easily—if they do, look again because the obvious
answers may be wrong. Watch out for answers that just “look right.” They may
be distractors—wrong answer choices deliberately meant to entice you.
MOVE AROUND
You’re allowed to skip around on the SAT subject tests. High scorers know this
fact. They move through the tests efficiently. They don’t dwell on any one
question, even a hard one, until they’ve tried every question at least once.
When you run into questions that look tough, circle them in your test booklet
and skip them for the time being. Go back and try again after you’ve answered
the easier ones if you’ve got time. After a second look, troublesome questions
can turn out to be remarkably simple.