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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I feel like this is an entirely different world I wasn't privy to.

I'm AA, attended predominantly AA, working class schools in the south.  I took the SATs once with no prep at all.  Scored close to 1300, with an almost perfect verbal score.

I'd heard of prep classes, but I didn't know anyone taking them.  Also, it would've been difficult for my family to afford.  I also thought it only bumped your score up a bit, like 100 points.

You mean to tell me that people whose families can afford it are able to bump up their progeny's scores by hundreds of points??

If true (and not statistically rare), what is the point of the test if those with money can essentially manufacture their kids' results??  What is it measuring??  To my mind, this strengthens the case for affirmative action.  [/quote]
The 2016 Redesign of the SAT purported to broaden access via free prep at Khan Academy.  In other words, they tried to make the test even more preppable.  College Board touts a study involving 100+ pt increases after a certain number of practice hours on Khan.  The trouble is that the kids poorly prepared by their high schools are the ones who suffer, although it is generally the case that many students with a half-decent educational background can do quite well with free prep materials such as Khan.  Few students need to spend a lot of money on prep, but a good deal of self-motivated effort is involved.

(This isn't the 1980s SAT, that's for sure.)[/quote]

PP here.  I took the test in the mid-1990s.  I know that a young relative just took the SATs, also with no prep.  :(

Are there any data available on the "penetration" of these test prep materials in underserved communities/poor schools?  In other words, do we know the extent to which kids from these backgrounds are actually aware that these prep materials are available, and actually use them?  I'd guess that many are not aware, or if they are, they're like me at that age, in that they don't know that prepping is even a thing they should be considering.[/quote]

I took the SATs in the mid 1980s, also with no prep, and scored 1400. I am white, my parents were college educated and I went to well regarded public schools in NY state. So your situation with no prep I get 100% because I don’t think a lot of people prepped back then.

As for your young relative who recently took the SAT, I strongly suspect she knew she could prep via khan academy (there is a link to it on the SAT registration page in a big bold box that says something like “15 minutes of practice a day helps improve your scores”). However, it is hard to be motivated to do self-preparation, especially without a trusted adult - teacher, guidance counselor, etc - telling you to do it. Heck, even with an adult telling them to do it, it is probably hard for a high schooler to be disciplined to practice. I think the students whose parents can and do pay for an actual prep class or tutoring probably are the ones whose scores increase the most due to preparation, because they are forced to sit there for an hour or so a week.

Bottom line, I agree this is very unfair. On top of that, anecdotally I think the test is of little worth in predicting who will successfully navigate and excel in college classes. [/quote]

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