As media outlets continue to report on the Long Island SAT cheating scandal and the College Board’s investigation into the matter, we are once again  reminded of the intense pressures students feel to do well on college entrance exams like the SAT and ACT.  A-List Education founder and president, Scott Farber, was called on by CBS News to offer his insight and expertise into the recently hot topic. Watch the video below to hear Scott’s thoughts as Jim Axelrod reports on the New York SAT cheating scandal that prompted The College Board to conduct an international review of SAT security procedures.

Scott being filmed for "Inside Edition" where he discussed the SAT cheating scandal

With news of the Long Island SAT cheating scandal being featured everywhere, people are reminded of the increasing pressures facing students and college applicants today, and the lengths that some are willing to go to get into their top-choice colleges.

Having tutored and worked with thousands of students applying to college (counting more than a few Great Neck kids as his clients), A-List Education founder and President, Scott Farber, was asked by numerous media outlets to comment on the events that took place. He tells The Daily Beast, Read more…

Interesting article from The Wall Street Journal, supporting one of A-List’s most valuable tutor’s theories…

Shea, Christopher. “Want to Boost Your Math SAT? Have Someone Yell at You”.  The Wall Street Journal.  June 2, 2011.

When applying to college, SAT preparation is important, but there is more to the college admissions process than standardized test preparation and SAT scores. The college essay gives you the opportunity to share a part of yourself that an SAT score or high school transcript cannot convey. Dean of Admission and Financial Aid at Harvard College, William R. Fitzsimmons, recently wrote in a piece for The New York Times, “One of the great clichés of college admissions is the exhortation that students find their own voices in the essay (and interviews)—and ‘be themselves.’ It’s a cliché because it’s good advice.”

At this point, you’re probably well on your way to having an impeccable college essay that will blow admissions officers away, but you also probably feel like you have been working on it forever! Remember the difference between a good college essay and a great college essay is that extra time you put into the writing process, so don’t skip out on the crucial final stages!

• EDIT: “Perhaps this point would fit in better at this part of my essay,” or “Maybe this really doesn’t support my topic” might be a few of the considerations that come to mind while editing your college essay. Do my ideas flow logically? Am I getting my point across? Review every element of your essay with a critical eye. Good editing skills and attention to detail will help you transform your rough draft into a perfectly polished essay.

• PROOF: There’s no room for spelling, punctuation, or grammatical errors in your essay, so get rid of them! Consider making appropriate changes for improving writing style and consistency. During this stage it might pay off to have someone else take a look at your writing. You’ve probably been working on this for some time, and a new set of eyes could very well pick up on something that you’ve missed.

• POLISH: You’ve finished proofreading and correcting all of the errors you came across. Now, it’s time for finishing touches. Does everything read well and flow smoothly? If you effectively worked your way through each stage of the college essay writing process, polishing should simply be matter of crossing your “t”s and dotting your “i”s.

English author, Samuel Johnson once said, “What is written without effort is in general read without pleasure.” The college admissions essay could be one of the most important essays you ever write. Taking the time to write it well and to really find your voice in your subject matter could pay off—big time.

Vocab Videos is a revolutionary new system bringing vocabulary to life and getting students engaged in the learning process. Educators, we encourage you to get in on the action!

As you know, the college admissions process—that time of year where students are busy prepping for the SAT, preparing their college applications, and trying to manage their school workload—can be overwhelming for students (along with teachers and guidance counsellors!). Incorporating Vocab Videos into your classrooms will benefit your students by improving their vocabulary, and in turn their academic performance, and by giving them in-school time to learn the words that they will need to know for the SAT and ACT.

Here are a few reasons why Vocab Videos is right for the classroom:

•Engages Students
Keeping students engaged in the classroom can undoubtedly be a struggle. Vocab Videos gets students excited about learning! Hilarious short videos illustrate the meanings of 500 of the most frequently tested SAT words making them easy for students to learn and remember. With humorous plotlines and engaging characters, integrating Vocab Videos into English classes is a fun and effective way to change up a monotonous vocabulary lesson, and teach students the vocabulary they’ll need to know for standardized tests and high-school English exams. Whether using Vocab Videos as a starter exercise to get students motivated to learn, watching an episode on your SmartBoard as a class, or assigning a chapter as a homework assignment for students to make use of their personal accounts, there is no wrong way to bring Vocab Videos into your classroom.

•Gets Results
Vocab Videos is extremely valuable for students. About 1/3 of the SAT reading section is made up of questions that are explicitly vocabulary-dependent—questions that are potentially worth 150 points in all. Students will likely be involved in varying degrees of SAT prep outside of the classroom, but Vocab Videos offers you a way to work test preparation into your everyday vocabulary lessons. And standardized tests aside, an increased vocabulary thoroughly improves literacy, making students better readers, writers and interpreters of information. So getting your students familiar with these words will not only help them write better papers, but could very well help them get into the colleges of their choice.

•Extensive Study Material
Watching a video once isn’t enough to remember it forever, so our extensive review material is an essential part of the Vocab Videos study program. After students have watched the videos, the quizzes at the end of each unit allow them to reinforce what they’ve seen, and SAT style questions prepare students for what they’ll encounter on standardized tests. An alphabetical glossary for organizational purposes helps teachers and students keep track of words they’ve mastered, and gives students the option to review definitions without re-watching the videos. Category lists group words by common themes to give students a fuller grasp of the words’ meanings. Additional worksheets list words and provide space for students to write their own sentences. Getting students involved in the learning process will give them a more complete understanding of the vocabulary. They will be better able to recognize and comprehend the words even within an unfamiliar context as they might appear on the SAT, ACT or in a reading assignment.

•Leverages Technology
Vocab Videos provides educators an opportunity to incorporate technology into the classroom. Living in a new-media world, you have the potential to enhance age-old teaching techniques with innovative tools that will enrich lessons and benefit students. Students love watching and sharing videos; the YouTube phenomenon is proof positive that online video is a powerful communication medium. Implementing video in the classroom will get students engaged and excited about learning. Students in today’s technology-driven world learn from a variety of mediums beyond the printed word. Vocab Videos not only improves literacy in a real sense by teaching students vocabulary, but also helps them become familiar with “reading” video and gathering information from different sources of media.

Cavanagh, S. “STEM Defection Seen to Occur After High School” Education Week. October 28, 2009.

STEM Defection Seen to Occur After High School

The college admissions process is stressful not only for students and guidance counselors, but for parents as well. We feel for you! You certainly want your children to get into the colleges of their dreams as much as they hope to attend the colleges of their dreams. Now, part of the test preparation process can be fun—at least for students (sorry, parents!). Vocab Videos is a revolutionary new system bringing vocabulary to life. Hilarious short videos illustrate the meanings of the most frequently tested SAT words making them easy for students to learn and remember.

Here are a few reasons why Vocab Videos is right for your child:

·         Perfect for preparing for the SAT, ACT, and high school English tests

VOCABULARY MATTERS: When vocabulary increases, so do your child’s SAT scores! About 1/3 of the SAT Reading section is made up of questions that are explicitly vocabulary-dependent—questions that are potentially worth 150 points in all! So, a better knowledge of vocabulary is a concrete way to improve test scores. And standardized tests aside, an increased vocabulary thoroughly improves literacy, making your child a better reader, writer and interpreter of information. A good vocabulary is important both inside and outside the classroom.  

·         THEY’LL ENJOY IT!

There’s not much about studying that could be considered “fun” for students, but that doesn’t make it any less important—it’s those good grades and SAT scores that are going to help your child get into his or her top-choice colleges. Vocab Videos makes studying this essential vocabulary more fun. Hilarious short videos illustrate the meanings of 500 of the most frequently tested SAT words making them easy to learn and remember. Parodies of some of your child’s favorite television shows like Lost, The Office, 24 and Gossip Girl make content more relevant, memorable and compelling for students.Vocab Videos’ humorous plotlines and engaging characters make it an effective and entertaining vocabulary system.

·         Useful study materials

Watching a video once isn’t enough to remember it forever, so our extensive review material is an essential part of the Vocab Videos study program. After students have watched the videos, the quizzes at the end of each unit allow them to reinforce what they’ve seen, and SAT style questions prepare students for what they’ll encounter on standardized tests. An alphabetical glossary helps students keep track of words they’ve mastered, and gives them the option to review definitions without re-watching the videos. Category lists group words by common themes, and additional worksheets list words and provide space for students to write their own sentences using the vocabulary.  If students have a true understanding of the vocabulary, they will be better able to recognize and comprehend the words—even within an unfamiliar context as they could appear on the SAT, ACT or in a homework assignment.  

·         Suits your child’s lifestyle

Between sports practices, extracurricular activities and school projects, we understand your child’s schedule can be jam-packed. Vocab Videos allows students to craft individual study programs, so that they can learn this crucial vocabulary on their own time. They can watch an episode before bed or study five words per day depending on their schedules and when they’re taking their standardized tests. Even if you decide to designate Vocab Videos as “homework” for your child, it won’t feel like their typical study time—Vocab Videos are funny and captivating. Students will be learning and having fun in the process!

It’s almost over.  I promise.

Seniors – you have spent your entire high school careers studying, taking tests and writing essays all in the hope of getting into that dream school.   And yet there are still SATs to take and scores to improve.  Before you throw up your hands in frustration, break down and cry into your pillow, or decide that being a 6^th year senior is actually a cool idea, here are 5 essential things you can do to increase your chances of nailing a top score this fall. 

Before we begin, you might want to know why on Earth you should take the advice of some guy you have never met.  Well that’s a good question; I’m impressed.  The funny thing is at this point I know many of you are desperate — if I said that the secret to a higher score was a diet of tarantulas and Red Bull some of you might just try it.  But before you run out in search of killer spiders or try to sprout your own set of wings, take a deep breath.  Trust me, I have worked with thousands of students, train teachers how to teach the SAT and still take the test myself (as sad as that may sound).

5 COMMANDMENTS FOR THE FINAL COUNTDOWN

1. Keep Studying – Hope alone will not raise your SAT score any more than it will win you the lottery.^*  Students who take practice tests, study vocabulary, and refine techniques are much more likely to see higher scores than those who are simply hoping to sit next to the smart kid and cheat.
2. Don’t Stress – Adding pressure to an SAT only hurts your problem solving abilities.  Taking a test in the fall is no more stressful than one in the spring, and to be honest, you are now a little older and little wiser (hopefully).  Many of my students have hit their top scores in October, November and December precisely because they went in stress-free.  If they got more points great.  If not, well, they had already submitted their scores and no one would ever know about this last attempt.^**
3. Don’t Give Up – Many students think they have little chance of scoring higher on a 2^nd or 3^rd SAT attempt.  True some students don’t improve, but even just the confidence that comes with experience can have an impact.  You are taking the test again for a reason, so if you don’t believe in yourself what’s the point?
4. Don’t Cheat – As the pressure builds, students sometimes feel the urge to find any advantage they can – even if it’s dishonest.  DO NOT ATTEMPT TO CHEAT ON THE SAT.  It’s just not worth it.  You have spent years building an academic profile and thinking that a few stolen answers will be the difference between acceptance and rejection is ridiculous.  Colleges see your scores in a range anyway and if you get caught you aren’t getting in anywhere.  You don’t want to live in your parents’ basement for the next few years. 
5. Get a Grip on Reality – Taking the SAT may seem overwhelming at times, but it’s just a bunch of English and math questions with some bubbling thrown in.  True, bubbling can be hard and the reading passages may not be your idea of a good time, but it’s just a test.  Colleges look at the whole picture, and you should too. 

^* If you have already won the lottery you are definitely luckier than the rest of us so I hope your test bursts into flames to balance out the universe. 

^** Score Choice for the SAT functions differently for particular colleges so always check on collegeboard.com for details.  In some cases there is an ethical way to avoid sending a final score even to schools who want all scores.  Email me for details.