Is SAT tutoring worth it?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. We’ve decided to sign her up for six weekly tutoring sessions through PrepMatters, which includes homework materials and proctored practice tests. DD is excited and I guess it’s worth it to know she’s left nothing on the table.

How did you choose prep matters?

I’d heard good things from other parents, read good reviews on DCUM, and checked out Yelp. I liked that there was no package contract and it’s personalized. She won’t need more diagnostics because she already has practice tests through BlueBook. The tutor will use those to build her program. After the initial consultation, we were matched with one of the more affordable tutors and we will end up spending $1250-$1500 for 5-6 sessions. She’ll get 30-60 minutes of homework per week to do before sessions, and will probably do 2 more practice tests. That’s all I’m willing to do.

Thank you—super helpful. One more question: How do you know it will be only six sessions? They don’t do packages, so was that an estimate based on the practice tests or something else?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DD is a hard working student but not a great test taker. She’s registered for the SAT in August and has some time this summer to prep but we want to be as efficient as possible. She has accommodations for anxiety and so far her prepping has consisted of an 8-hour online boot camp and self study with Khan, but she’s been more focused on her schoolwork and AP exams this year so hasn’t been as disciplined as she could be with the SAT prep. She’s taken both the SAT and the ACT and prefers the SAT so we won’t bother with the ACT again.

Fall 2023 PSAT 1120
March 2024 SAT 1280
April ACT 27
June 2024 SAT 1270

Would tutoring help a kid like this? She’ll need at least a 1400 to submit her scores to her preferred schools. Her performance is just below the midpoint for her high performing public school. Would you pay for tutoring in this situation or give up and TO?

I’m leaning toward tutoring because I think DD might regret not doing her best - DH thinks it’s not worth it and she’s probably maxed out.

Are you kidding? Everyone gets tutoring. And most are anxious before tests. Total BS to get extra time. Hope your DD isn’t a surgeon or trial lawyer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:DD is a hard working student but not a great test taker. She’s registered for the SAT in August and has some time this summer to prep but we want to be as efficient as possible. She has accommodations for anxiety and so far her prepping has consisted of an 8-hour online boot camp and self study with Khan, but she’s been more focused on her schoolwork and AP exams this year so hasn’t been as disciplined as she could be with the SAT prep. She’s taken both the SAT and the ACT and prefers the SAT so we won’t bother with the ACT again.

Fall 2023 PSAT 1120
March 2024 SAT 1280
April ACT 27
June 2024 SAT 1270

Would tutoring help a kid like this? She’ll need at least a 1400 to submit her scores to her preferred schools. Her performance is just below the midpoint for her high performing public school. Would you pay for tutoring in this situation or give up and TO?

I’m leaning toward tutoring because I think DD might regret not doing her best - DH thinks it’s not worth it and she’s probably maxed out.

Are you kidding? Everyone gets tutoring. And most are anxious before tests. Total BS to get extra time. Hope your DD isn’t a surgeon or trial lawyer.

And how could a kid who has never had tutoring be maxed out?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The most surprising thing we learned when hiring an SAT tutor for math (after DC self-studied and took the test 2x on his own): Tutor said to DC, “Wait, you’ve been doing all the math problems during the test? That’s not how we do it here.” And proceeded to teach him a process of evaluating/eliminating the math answers to arrive at the correct answer much more quickly that how he was previously doing it. His math score increased 60 points using this method.

Can you recommend the tutor?

MLS Tutors

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DD is a hard working student but not a great test taker. She’s registered for the SAT in August and has some time this summer to prep but we want to be as efficient as possible. She has accommodations for anxiety and so far her prepping has consisted of an 8-hour online boot camp and self study with Khan, but she’s been more focused on her schoolwork and AP exams this year so hasn’t been as disciplined as she could be with the SAT prep. She’s taken both the SAT and the ACT and prefers the SAT so we won’t bother with the ACT again.

Fall 2023 PSAT 1120
March 2024 SAT 1280
April ACT 27
June 2024 SAT 1270

Would tutoring help a kid like this? She’ll need at least a 1400 to submit her scores to her preferred schools. Her performance is just below the midpoint for her high performing public school. Would you pay for tutoring in this situation or give up and TO?

I’m leaning toward tutoring because I think DD might regret not doing her best - DH thinks it’s not worth it and she’s probably maxed out.

I'd pay for 5-10 hours of 1to1 tutoring. They will help identify key areas to improve. If the practice tests don't raise the score, then I'd stop. Some kids don't benefit from tutoring.

Some do, and ideally 5-6 hours of 1-1 tutoring will get you there

[Anonymous]

Sounds like a good outcome to give her some tutoring. This stuff can move and it'll help her with those schools.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP here. We’ve decided to sign her up for six weekly tutoring sessions through PrepMatters, which includes homework materials and proctored practice tests. DD is excited and I guess it’s worth it to know she’s left nothing on the table.

How did you choose prep matters?

I’d heard good things from other parents, read good reviews on DCUM, and checked out Yelp. I liked that there was no package contract and it’s personalized. She won’t need more diagnostics because she already has practice tests through BlueBook. The tutor will use those to build her program. After the initial consultation, we were matched with one of the more affordable tutors and we will end up spending $1250-$1500 for 5-6 sessions. She’ll get 30-60 minutes of homework per week to do before sessions, and will probably do 2 more practice tests. That’s all I’m willing to do.

Thank you—super helpful. One more question: How do you know it will be only six sessions? They don’t do packages, so was that an estimate based on the practice tests or something else?

The number of sessions was based on our budget and availability between now and the August test. But it’s also in line with recommendations of other parents who felt their kids saw diminishing returns after 6 sessions. Plus, DD isn’t starting from scratch - she already has experience with the digital format and lots of data.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP again with another note. I don’t believe her test anxiety is the problem anymore. Her accommodations help a lot. She says she gets tripped up on the wording of questions and is weak on the math. Verbal is 680. We’ve worked hard to minimize her stress, and she’s only applying to TO schools. She just wants to do her best. This is for her, not us, and we want to help support her goals.

I would do test prep this summer. One on one. My kid had very similar scores on the practice tests at the same point, and is responding very well to tests prep. Practice tests are now in 1400s.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP again with another note. I don’t believe her test anxiety is the problem anymore. Her accommodations help a lot. She says she gets tripped up on the wording of questions and is weak on the math. Verbal is 680. We’ve worked hard to minimize her stress, and she’s only applying to TO schools. She just wants to do her best. This is for her, not us, and we want to help support her goals.

I would do test prep this summer. One on one. My kid had very similar scores on the practice tests at the same point, and is responding very well to tests prep. Practice tests are now in 1400s.

This is encouraging, thanks! I hope DD has the same experience. She’s excited.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP again with another note. I don’t believe her test anxiety is the problem anymore. Her accommodations help a lot. She says she gets tripped up on the wording of questions and is weak on the math. Verbal is 680. We’ve worked hard to minimize her stress, and she’s only applying to TO schools. She just wants to do her best. This is for her, not us, and we want to help support her goals.

I would do test prep this summer. One on one. My kid had very similar scores on the practice tests at the same point, and is responding very well to tests prep. Practice tests are now in 1400s.

This is encouraging, thanks! I hope DD has the same experience. She’s excited.

Op here. It’s two nights before the test and DD is nervous but feeling much more confident thanks to six hours of 1-1 tutoring. She learned strategies for using Desmos, filled gaps in basic math, practiced trusting her instincts, and reviewed basic grammar. Hopefully she’ll have a stronger foundation now. Most importantly, she worked hard and will have no regrets that she did her best.

[Anonymous]

Good luck to her!!!

[Anonymous]

OP-I have a kid with anxiety in 9th grade and I anticipate that she is going to struggle with the timed nature of the SAT. Is there anything you would have done differently like started practice tests earlier?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP-I have a kid with anxiety in 9th grade and I anticipate that she is going to struggle with the timed nature of the SAT. Is there anything you would have done differently like started practice tests earlier?

I think the practice tests are helpful, but only if your kid takes the time to go over all the answers. Mine didn’t, which is why she saw no improvement from March to June. Her score actually went down, which could just be a bad test day. Too many practice tests with no improvement feels like spinning wheels and can create a stuck mentality. I’m really glad she did the tutoring. There were more gaps than we realized. She’s taking the test now, so we’ll know more about the outcome in a few weeks. But the difference in her peace of mind was worth it already.

P.S. Make sure you leave lots of time to get to the test site. We drove to Springbrook and the traffic was so bad, kids started walking and running 1/2 mile away. That’s tough for a high anxiety kid.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:DD is a hard working student but not a great test taker. She’s registered for the SAT in August and has some time this summer to prep but we want to be as efficient as possible. She has accommodations for anxiety and so far her prepping has consisted of an 8-hour online boot camp and self study with Khan, but she’s been more focused on her schoolwork and AP exams this year so hasn’t been as disciplined as she could be with the SAT prep. She’s taken both the SAT and the ACT and prefers the SAT so we won’t bother with the ACT again.

Fall 2023 PSAT 1120
March 2024 SAT 1280
April ACT 27
June 2024 SAT 1270

Would tutoring help a kid like this? She’ll need at least a 1400 to submit her scores to her preferred schools. Her performance is just below the midpoint for her high performing public school. Would you pay for tutoring in this situation or give up and TO?

I’m leaning toward tutoring because I think DD might regret not doing her best - DH thinks it’s not worth it and she’s probably maxed out.

If by "isn't a good test taker," you mean she hasn't internalized test taking strategies or learned to think like the test writer, then yes get a good tutor it can make a noticeable difference in a few hours over a handful of sessions. If you are just saying "isn't a great test taker" to mean that she is actually about average intelligence for her high performing public school, then I would still try. it would cost you maybe $500-$1000 to see if makes a difference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:It all depends.
Some tutors are test preparers or know of someone who writes these tests.
Please don’t jump into me being a conspiracy theorist.
I know very well what I am saying. These tutors obviously won’t reveal anything but will go over material which is quite similar to the upcoming actual tests; thus 4-5 hours may help with gaining more than 100 points and 10 hours causing a gain of 200 points in math.

You're not a conspiracy theorist, you're just dumb and gullible.