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The New SAT: New Content, New Format: Contact Us
The New SAT: New Content, New Format: Contact Us
Table of Contents
The SAT is designed to test critical thinking skills through practical application. What
this means is that the professionals who design the test are constantly looking for the
most realistic ways to present problems in order to mimic real-world applications and
collegiate-level curricula.
The SAT has gone through many iterations, with the most recent modification going
into effect in March of 2016. This version of the exam presents changes in both format
and content.
• No guessing penalty
• Scored out of 1600, with only two primary section scores: “Math” and
“Evidence-Based Reading and Writing”
• Cross-sectional subscores for “Analysis of History/Social Science” and
“Analysis of Science”
• Optional 50-minute Essay section at the end of the exam
While the Reading test and Writing and Language test each have their own themes
and formats, the Evidence-Based Reading and Writing section has two primary focus
areas, known as “Command of Evidence” and “Words in Context.” Questions related to
“Command of Evidence” will require students to demonstrate reading comprehension
skills and basic literary analysis to determine the relationships between passage concepts.
In contrast, questions related to “Words in Context” will require students to draw on
the thematic elements and stylistic construction of the given passage to determine
relationships between word usage.