My Take on a New Offer
The idea of parents forming small groups for SAT/ACT preparation is an excellent opportunity for families who wish to take advantage of an offer to save costs. However, the topic warrants some cautionary comments.
First, parents should not assume that just because they have formed a group that their children will work well together, particularly when the participants know one another.
Second, the instructor must remain mindful of such students’ personal relationships and build brief periods of “break” time into the sessions so that group members can relate on a personal level. As sessions tend to occur after school or during weekend time, if the facilitator is not mindful of the students’ need to interact, some will have difficulty focusing on the content until their need for socialization is met.
Third, the size of the group should be small so that students who need individualized attention will seek it without fear of embarrassment in front of their friends.
Fourth, the facilitator needs to teach students skills that will improve their study habits and that will transfer to life-long learning.
Fifth, students must “do their homework” so that sessions focus on the explanation of reasons one choice worked better than another as opposed to test-taking practice. This practice, known as metacognition, or thinking about their thinking–particularly in retrospect, moves learning forward.
Lastly, some students flourish only when they receive private instruction. When families take advantage of this option, the number of required meetings often reduces.
While the standardized testing big business will force the retention of these exams, today, many colleges and universities elect to move away from requiring the submission of standardized test scores.
Instead of obsessing over their performance on these tests, students need to focus, instead, on their grades; their extracurricular pursuits; opportunities that allow them to serve their community and, thus, contribute to society, and on the quality of their application essays.
Joyce Singer http://www.joycesinger.com
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