How to Improve Your SAT Math Score
Rashad Evans, former UFC middleweight champion once said, “If I go as hard as I can in practice [and] make sure it’s a lot harder than a fight, then the fight’s going to be easy.” That should be your mentality with the SAT. Think of it as do-or-die. This one test could determine your post-high school future, so why not train for it like Rashad Evans?
The SAT is designed to be tricky; it’s basically a math IQ test. Thus, preparation for this exam will be different from what you’ve been used to in your math classes. It’s simply not a study-guide-looks-just-like-the-exam type of exam. So in order to tackle this test, here are some SAT strategies that will help improve your math score.
First, you have to study differently.
Because of the nature of the SAT, studying for it will require some effort. Instead of studying to gain knowledge, it’s more important to gain a full understanding of the concepts. Before this point, most high school students study math superficially: they want to know how to do the problems in their homework and nothing more.
As an example, many students can tell you what the quadratic formula is, but not know how to complete the square (even though the formula was derived by completing the square). Therefore, to study for this exam, it helps to not just know how, but also to know why. Why is it that if the discriminant is zero (in the quadratic formula) there is only one real solution? Why is it that sin(180-x) = sin(x)? Why is it that cosine is an even function and sine is odd?
Study as if there is an annoying voice asking “why” for every concept you come across.
Second, make your study sessions progressively harder.
Just as Rashad Evans makes training harder than fights, you should be studying harder concepts than will appear on the exam. Once you’ve studied to gain understanding, it’s time to test it. Start easy and build up; take on problems that require more of you than you are completely comfortable with. Test your knowledge.
If you’re studying through a book, start with earlier exercises (1-15 problems in a set), then work your way up to the end (some of which might be word problems). Look on the internet and search for “hard [insert math topic you are studying here] problems” and take those on. The key is to really try to solve these problems, and if you can’t, don’t get discouraged; the attempt itself causes new connections to form in your brain. This will ultimately make you smarter, and since the SAT is a form of an IQ test, it will only help to give those problems your best effort.
Finally, get an SAT tutor.
You need an SAT mentor. Just like the best fighters have their mentors in their corner, you too need an SAT coaching staff. You need a team to give you advice and offer a fresh perspective. A team you can ask your tough questions to–one that will provide detailed answers that make sense. Some students may or may not be fortunate enough to have such a mentor guide them to success, but luckily, at Sage, there is a network ready to help. Having such a team in your corner will only increase the chances of you reaching your full potential on the SAT and beyond.
Explore our SAT test prep services here. Small classes. Big results.
