Debbie Stier's Blog, page 3
June 24, 2014
How to Cultivate Teenage Drive
How to cultivate teenage drive is the $64,000 question, and while I am not a parenting expert, I do believe that the secret to motivating a teenager is the relationship. A shared experience can be a powerful agent of connection, and it is that connection that allows an adult to motivate an adolescent.
*Collecting Dance. Developmental psychologist Gordon Neufeld explains the “collecting ritual” in his book Hold On To Your Kids. The collecting dance is akin to making a baby smile before picking it up. The same holds true for a teenager: you must catch the eye and establish a connection in order to be a source of motivation.
*Enthusiasm. Most teenagers are more interested in their friends than in their parents and the SATs. In fact, the more into the friends they are, the harder it will be to get their attention. A peer-oriented teenager will need more enthusiasm and initiative from the parent to become motivated than one who is oriented toward adults. Given Ethan’s level of peer orientation at the time, I needed to deploy radical enthusiasm.
*Parental Involvement. Remain interested and involved, even if your teenager is resistant. I saw with my own eyes that adolescents do better academically when parents are involved beyond monitoring homework, and I believe Neufeld’s work with adolescents confirms my experience.
*Invite the Connection. The most potent source of motivation for a teenager is attention and interest in what they are doing. A shared project says that the child matters and is special. The relationship that results from this sustained proximity allows for the parent to act as a compass in the child’s life and to activate motivation.
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Here's another, related post: Motivating a Teenager to Study for the SAT
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What is the Perfect Score Project? Find out more here.
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Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis.
The post How to Cultivate Teenage Drive appeared first on Perfect Score Project.
June 17, 2014
The Best Way to Prepare for the Critical Reading Section
A lot of parents ask me what they can do over the summer to help their children prepare for the critical reading section of the SAT.
From a parent of a rising junior:
Most tutors say that in order to improve critical reading (say 700+), you need to be a voracious reader. Well, that takes years. Forget about the sentence completion of the CR for the moment, wouldn't it be more efficient to just do a bunch of critical reading passages, even if it they're from non-CB material?
This is, if you are in a crunch and only have the summer to improve (i.e. 3 months).
Assume it takes 10 hours to read a book. I could do 20 CR test sections in that amount of time. 5 books = 100 CR test sections.
I would be wary of all unofficial SAT reading passages and use official, College Board material when it comes to "test prep."
That said, there is a lot you can do this summer to bolster the foundation before you start official "test prep."
To strengthen the foundation, it would be more effective to read articles from the New Yorker, The Economist, The New Republic or Smithsonian magazine. To be a strong reader, you need to have background knowledge and a strong vocabulary, which articles from these publications would provide.
Be sure to read the print editions as the online versions aren’t necessarily the same caliber.
Tip: Discussing the articles is essential. Conversations are the bedrock of memory.
Research shows that "joint conversation," where the child takes part in the conversation, helps with memory, vocabulary, and awareness of grammar.
When children can make sense of what they are experiencing through conversation, they are able to understand key features better and encode more completely.
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What is the Perfect Score Project? Find out more here.
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If you're interested in having me attend your book group, I'd love to! Here's the link: Book the Writer.
To find out more about Book the Writer and its founder, Jean Hanff Korelitz, check out this story in the New York Times.
If you don't belong to a book group, but would like to, Jean can create a "pop up" group.
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Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis.
The post The Best Way to Prepare for the Critical Reading Section appeared first on Perfect Score Project.
June 11, 2014
Signs of Good Test Prep
I'm just going to call it like I see it:
Most non- College Board test prep material is downright bad. I'd go so far as to say that most unofficial material ventures beyond the realm of "not helpful" and veers into the "harmful" zone.
Think of it this way: If you're training for a tennis match, you don't want to show up on game day to discover that the match is being played on a squash court. You want to have practiced under the most accurate conditions possible.
But...this is not to say that all unofficial material is "bad." In fact, some of it is excellent. It's a matter of deciphering the good from the bad, which can be difficult for the average layperson who is bombarded with millions of options.
So how do you know? First of all, don't assume that hard test prep means "good” test prep. It doesn't.
Signs of "good" test prep:
*Refers back to the The Official SAT Study Guide (aka the Blue Book). Helps student interpret the Blue Book.
*Written by an SAT expert. (Don’t assume PhD signals “SAT mastery.” Maybe,but maybe not.)
*Recommends official material for diagnostic SAT, and full official practice tests as part of test preparation.
*Has a goal-setting strategy: For sections that are in “order of difficulty” you should strive for a mastery of questions inside a goal zone before attempting harder questions. Put simply: you should leave hard questions blank if you haven’t mastered the easy ones.
*Addresses issue of fundamental skills and test strategy. Exception: test prep aimed solely at high achievers.
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The Perfect Score Project: Uncovering the Secrets of the SAT was published on February 25, 2014.
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis
The post Signs of Good Test Prep appeared first on Perfect Score Project.
May 28, 2014
5 Easy Tips for the SAT
Here are five easy tips to improve your SAT score:
1) Avoid Careless Errors -- Read every word in the question and answer choices, don't get stuck on a question, use your calculator (even for the easy questions). Make sure to turn the last page of every section -- especially at the end of the test, when you're tired.
2) Sit in the front row if you’re allowed to choose your own seat. This will minimize distractions.
3) Keep your own time during the test. Don’t rely on the proctors. Bring an analog watch. You can’t use a phone or a watch that beeps. I had one really bad SAT experience where the proctor botched the time and the 5-minute warnings on nearly every section.
4) Bring the right snacks. The test is only 4 hours, but it will be a good six hours from the time you have breakfast until you’ll be free for lunch. Plan to use the 3 five-minute breaks wisely. My favorite snacks were apple (fills the belly), super dark chocolate (70% cocoa or higher), water, Listerine strips.
5) Make sure you are at a test center that administers the SAT in classrooms, versus gyms and cafeterias, which are noisy and distracting.
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Click here to sign up for SAT tips to arrive in your In Box. And stay connected on Facebook and Twitter where I often post links of interest.
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Illustrations painted by Jennifer Orkin Lewis.
The post 5 Easy Tips for the SAT appeared first on Perfect Score Project.
May 27, 2014
How Much Can You Improve an SAT Score?
It's accepted wisdom that familiarity with the SAT can improve performance (thus, a $4.5 billion test prep industry), but the College Board reports average score gains to be a mere 5-20 points -- after test prep.
I raised my superscore by 330 points and my son raised his by 590 points from his sophomore PSAT. We beat the odds many times over.
We both raised our scores by methodically working our way through the nuts and bolts of the fundamental skills of reading (vocabulary), writing (grammar) and math. We also worked on test-taking strategy, which is what I think most people traditionally think of as “test prep” (though most students would have trouble achieving significant score gains from strategy alone), and we worked on our endurance.
The SAT is as much about performance on test day as it is about the knowledge being tested. Nothing in in college or in my career prepared me to focus so intently for such a sustained amount of time. Therefore, it’s essential to take full, timed practice tests to build endurance before taking a real SAT. And trust me, no one thinks they have time for this!
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What is the Perfect Score Project? Find out here.
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If you're interested in having me to your book group, here's the link: Book the Writer. If you don't belong to a book group but would like to, Jean Hanff Korelitz can create a "pop up" group.
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For speaking engagements, contact Jamie Brickhouse at the redBrick Agency 646.281.9041
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Illustrations painted by Jennifer Orkin Lewis.
The post How Much Can You Improve an SAT Score? appeared first on Perfect Score Project.
May 24, 2014
How Can Schools Help Students Prep for the SAT?
What can schools do to help students become better prepared for the SAT?
Stop perpetuating the idea that it’s a bad test, that some students are “bad testers,” and that it’s unimportant. Blaming the test doesn’t help anyone, especially the students, many of whom still have to take it and would benefit from the opportunities that can come from doing well. For example, merit aid. The SAT is often a variable in decisions about scholarship money. I would imagine most students could use and would appreciate merit aid for collage (versus loans, which need to be repaid).
Teach to mastery and test for mastery (most of us don’t know what we don’t know). “Did you understand?” does not verify mastery. I thought learning was easy – it was “remembering” that was hard! (And I don’t think this was unique to my age as I see the same issue in both of my kids if they don’t practice what they learn.)
Keep circling back to recheck for mastery. I found that the teachers who gave pop quizzes to my son kept him on toes and gave us all an accurate read on how he was doing.
Encourage practice. “Practice” is often spoken of with derision and scoffed at as “rote memorization.” But as I often remind my daughter if she slacks on her math worksheets, “You’re not going get to Carnegie Hall with a great teacher, you might get there with a great teacher and great practice.”
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What is the Perfect Score Project? Find out here.
...................................................
For speaking engagements, contact Jamie Brickhouse at the redBrick Agency 646.281.9041
...................................................
If you're interested in having me attend your book group, I'd love to! Here's the link: Book the Writer.
To find out more about Book the Writer and its founder, Jean Hanff Korelitz, check out this story in the New York Times.
If you don't belong to a book group, but would like to, Jean can create a "pop up" group.
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All of the fabulous illustrations on this site are hand painted by Jennifer Orkin Lewis.
The post How Can Schools Help Students Prep for the SAT? appeared first on Perfect Score Project.
May 19, 2014
What Makes a Good Test Location?
I took the SATs 7 times in 5 different schools. Here's how I think schools can ensure the best test conditions for students taking the SAT:
The SAT should be taken in classrooms, not gyms and cafeterias. Classrooms have fewer distractions
Full-size desks and chairs should be used, not those tablet desks. They’re too small for an optimal SAT experience, despite what the official rules allow.
There should be a visible clock in all test rooms and the proctors need to write the section end time down and be sure to give 5-minute warnings.
Proctors should meticulously follow the rules. After I wrote about my experience with a rule-breaking proctor, I heard horror stories from so many people about inattentive proctors.
“Quiet” should be enforced -- even in the hallways during testing hours.
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I wrote a book about the the SAT called The Perfect Score Project.
You can read the prologue, listen to an audio clip, and check out the reader reviews.
The book is a hybrid: part guide to decoding (and acing) the SAT/part memoir. It's the story of how I grew as a mother, and how my son and I managed to eek some joy out of the SAT process. It's also all the tips I learned about how to ace the test. Tips such as What makes a good testing location...or The truth about brand-name SAT prep...or How to know if you should self-study, take a class, or use a tutor.
Ultimately, the book is about how I managed to motivate my teenage son to care about the most reviled right of passage in high school: The SAT.
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All of the fabulous illustrations on this site are hand painted by Jennifer Orkin Lewis.
The post What Makes a Good Test Location? appeared first on Perfect Score Project.
May 18, 2014
How To Make Big Score Gains on the SAT
What was the biggest surprise after taking the SAT 7 times?
There's no way to test prep your way into significant score gains on the SAT -- significant score gains come with a solid foundation. If the fundamentals are strong, good test prep can be very effective. Tips and tricks can optimize an SAT score, but the big gains come with solid skills.
For my younger, post-project child, we went back to her foundational skills to shore them up before starting any “test prep.” She had done well in Algebra 1 and Geometry, but she did a refresher course and I made sure she passed the state exam with 90% or higher before moving onto Algebra 2.
She reads one article per day from the NY Times and [is supposed to] keep a list of the vocabulary words she doesn’t know.* And we discuss the words and the main idea of the story she chose.
I fastidiously correct grammar.
I didn't have her start "test prep" (i.e. familiarizing her with the SAT and test-taking strategies) until midway through junior year.
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*Regarding this "written down vocabulary list" -- the truth is, I preach more than I practice on this front. Sometimes she writes down the words; most of the time she does not. If I were the perfect SAT mom, I'd enforce the rule, but I don't. We do actually discuss the words all the time though, and if you spend any time with us, you will definitely hear me say (probably more than once), "Let me hear you use it in a sentence."
If I learned anything from kid #1, it's that "Do you know what that means?" "Yes." -- does not actually mean that he/she knows what that means. Verify!
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What is the Perfect Score Project? Find out more here.
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For speaking engagements, contact Jamie Brickhouse at the redBrick Agency 646.281.9041
You can find press materials on the Press Kit page.
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If you're interested in having me attend your book group, I'd love to! Here's the link: Book the Writer.
To find out more about Book the Writer and its founder, Jean Hanff Korelitz, check out this story in the New York Times.
If you don't belong to a book group, but would like to, Jean can create a "pop up" group.
..................................................
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis.
The post How To Make Big Score Gains on the SAT appeared first on Perfect Score Project.
May 17, 2014
Takeaways From the Book to Prepare for the SAT
A few important takeaways from the book to help people prepare for the SAT:
1) Use official, College Board material (the Blue Book and the College Board’s online course) as the centerpiece of all test preparation. Any/all supplementary material should lead back to the mothership, not replace it. Don’t use any “unofficial” practice tests.
2) Most students should plan on a full school year of test prep to maximize their potential and reduce their stress. Preparing for the SAT and studying in school aren’t mutually exclusive activities.
3) Take full-length, timed practice tests to build endurance/stamina. The SAT is every bit as much about performance on test day as it is about the knowledge being tested.
Experienced tutors advise 10-15 full practice tests.
Review all mistakes until you can explain them to someone else.
Keep track of errors and guesses by category.
Mimic actual test conditions as closely as possible
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From Education Week Q & A. You can read the full interview here: Education Week Part I and Education Week Part II.
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What is the Perfect Score Project? Find out more here.
...................................................
If you're interested in having me attend your book group, I'd love to! Here's the link: Book the Writer.
To find out more about Book the Writer and its founder, Jean Hanff Korelitz, check out this story in the New York Times.
If you don't belong to a book group, but would like to, Jean can create a "pop up" group.
..................................................
Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis.
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The post Takeaways From the Book to Prepare for the SAT appeared first on Perfect Score Project.
May 16, 2014
What is the SAT Testing?
People often say that to do well on the SAT is to be good at taking the test.
I disagree.
Good preparation means having a strong foundation in reading, writing and math.
There is “strategy” based test prep and foundational-based test prep. Most people need foundational work and yet most people think of test prep as “strategy.” You can certainly optimize your score by learning strategies, but I don’t think the big gains come from this type of test prep for most students.
The College Board cites research that shows the average score gain after test prep to be 5-20 points. I’d guess these are the students who do the strategy-only test prep.
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The other night, I had the pleasure of attending a book club ... as the author. It was a lot of fun and a much more engaged and intimate experience than a traditional "book event."
Book the Writer was started by novelist Jean Hanff Korelitz. She represents 60 New York based writers — some of them Pulitzer Prize Winners, National Book Award Winners, New York Times Bestselling authors and well known television and radio personalities — who are available to attend groups in Manhattan and Brooklyn. You can read more about Book the Writer in the New York Times.
And, if you're interested in having me attend your book group, I'd love to! Here's the link: Book the Writer
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Illustrations by Jennifer Orkin Lewis.
The post What is the SAT Testing? appeared first on Perfect Score Project.
