You’ve done it! You’ve made it through 5 sections, 150 questions, one essay, and over 2 and a half hours of testing. You may be ready to go home and take a well-deserved nap (or run around after sitting for so long) but before you breathe a deep sigh of relief, there’s one final section.
The experimental section is the shortest section of the test: only 15 minutes and 16 questions total. Unlike the other SSAT sections, the experimental section has a mix of question types: six verbal, five reading, and five quantitative. While you want to answer every question and try your hardest, don’t let the experimental section stress or overwhelm you: it is neither scored nor sent to schools.
So, if it’s not scored, why does this section exist? Writing a test like the SSAT can be difficult, and test writers use this last section to try out new questions. Test writers will evaluate the results of each question to determine if it is appropriate and reliable and ultimately if it will appear on the test in future years. Once you’ve finished those last 15 minutes, you can be proud of both conquering a long and difficult test and playing a role in shaping the test for years to come.
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, more and more tests were moving to a computerized format, and now, at-home testing has become a feasible alternative. Some tests, such as the ISEE and SSAT, are available at home, but what is the alternative for the benchmark mock testing that is commonly administered...
The saying “practice as you’d like to perform” is applicable to so many things, especially test preparation. Practice tests are the foundation of preparation for this very reason. Practice tests help simulate test day and expose you to the content and structure of the test.
But taking a practice test is...
One of the integral features of the Test Innovators preparation platform is the system of Practice Exercises, which is located on the “Practice Exercises” tab of the dashboard. The Practice Exercises are an important supplement to the full-length Practice Tests. Here are a few tips for maximizing the Practice Exercises:
Get resources: full-length SSAT practice tests, level-appropriate vocabulary lists, a watch for test day (and practice sections!), a quiet place to complete timed sections
Help students eat well, sleep well, and exercise often
The most important rule of reading comprehension is that the passage will always provide all of the information needed to answer the question. This means that reading comprehension is really like a scavenger hunt, and your objective is to get as good as possible at sleuthing, finding the lines that...
Whether your test date is months away or next week, you may be wondering how to create a study plan that helps you maximize your time and achieve success on test day. Regardless of where you are in the preparation process, we’ve got you covered with a strategic roadmap that...
Whether you’re an eager student or an anxious parent, we know just how intimidating applying to independent and private schools can be. Our Director of Placement, Laurie Geromini, sat down with two students who recently completed the process to learn more about their experiences, as well as the lessons and...
You took the ISEE, but when you get your scores back, they aren’t what you were hoping for. So you wonder, “Can I take the test again?” Yes, you can retake the ISEE. There are three testing seasons in every 12-month admission cycle, and you can take the test once...
What is a good score on the SSAT? That's a question we get asked a lot here at Test Innovators. Maybe you just got your score report back, or perhaps you've just taken a practice test and wonder whether or not your scores are acceptable.
