The SAT writing exam consists of 49 multiple-choice questions and an essay. SAT Writing Essentials mirrors the real test with 35 minutes devoted to the questions, followed by 25 minutes for the essay. Incorporating the SAT's most recent changes, these questions emphasize grammar and usage and the most effective way to revise a sentence or passage. The book covers specific strategies for writing a timed essay and includes four different practice writing tests to effectively prepare students for the essay.
For over 80 years, high school juniors and seniors have faced the SAT
on their paths to college. During that time, the test has undergone some
changes. However, the new SAT, offered for the first time in March
2005, represents the most significant change in the history of the test.
What does that mean for the more than two million students who take
the test each year? They’ll miss more of the Saturday on which they
take it: The old SAT was three hours long, and the new one is almost
four. Instead of two sections, the test now includes three, and the top
score is 2,400 instead of 1,600. But of even greater importance are the
changes within those sections. Let’s look more closely at what today’s
students will encounter with the new SAT.
