Sylvan, Barrons, Ivy West, Ames Seminars, Regent Review:
For 15 Years I've Taught Their Classes, Trained Their Tutors & Created Their Curriculum;
Now I Can Privately Teach You How to Maximize Your SAT or ACT Score
Classroom located in
Lafayette (Su)
Los Altos (M/W/Sat)
SF 2 blocks from BART (Tu)
Small 6-Week SAT Seminars in SF, Walnut Creek & Los Altos
Justin Sigars
justin@bayareatutoring.com
510-910-9003
Guarantee: 200+ Gain with Only 12 Hours Tutoring
If, after only 12 hours of tutoring, with a few hours of homework in between sessions, a student has not increased his or her score by at least 200 points, I will offer FREE PRIVATE SESSIONS until that student obtains the promised increase (provided s/he hasn't already achieved an increase from another tutor or company, though many of these students still get the 200pt boost anyway). Compare that to a typical class of 30 or 40 hours whose guarantee is that you can simply retake the same class!
My fifteen years of SAT/ACT experience (literally thousands of hours) have given me an unparalleled intimacy with the tests. Test prep companies cannot achieve the results I can as quickly as I can because they hire cheaper, part-time teachers, who are often just students themselves, not full-time SAT/ACT teachers. And they use proprietary rather than official materials, which is a BIG handicap: the lower standards of these unofficial materials don't stand up to the more precise, and therefore more predictable, official tests. You cannot, therefore, teach as many strategies as you can using official tests.
SAT/ACT Teaching
Experience Matters!
A good math teacher can explain how to solve math problems you have missed. An excellent math teacher can clearly explain the math concepts behind the problems you miss so that you can apply the lesson more widely to future problems. An excellent SAT/ACT math tutor can go even further by showing you multiple ways to solve each problem, and by revealing what in each problem is indicative of the test—that is, can teach you "SAT math." Only such a tutor who knows the test like the back of his hand can make the most out of the learning opportunities provided by your missed problems. What does that mean? If you learn more from those opportunities, you will reduce the amount of work you will need to do (i.e., you will have to miss fewer questions) to prepare for the test!
Even High School Math & English Teachers Are Ill-Equipped
Smaller test prep companies sometimes hire high school teachers in the hopes of achieving higher gains, but even high school teachers are ill-equipped to prepare students for the SAT and ACT. For example, SAT math has as much in common with logic than it does with standard high school math, and the skills needed to practice for the essay run contrary to what English teachers teach. Indeed, as part of the evaluative work I have done for many test prep companies, I have seen first hand how much time is wasted by even the best teachers because of their lack of knowledge of the format and specific content of the SAT/ACT. My "day job," on the other hand, is evaluating and creating SAT and ACT curriculum!
Rates
The cost for my 12 hour package covering reading, writing and math is $2400, and comes with a 200 point guarantee. The cost for a 6 hour package is $1200. This time can be divided into sixty-minute or ninety-minute sessions. You can also choose to pay per-session (price varies with location and availability). All cancellations must be made within 24 hours, emergencies and illnesses excepted.
As tempting as at-home tutoring can be, students are, without a doubt, much more alert and receptive when they are in unfamiliar surroundings, so I do not offer at-home tutoring.
The SAT/ACT Essay
My background teaching composition classes at UC Berkeley makes me the perfect choice for teaching the SAT and ACT because each test now includes a written essay. (That essay, incidentally, is made available to colleges so that they can compare it to students' application essays and English grades.)
Don't Have Much Time?
Sessions don't have to be weekly. Each subsequent session can occur as soon as the homework from the previous session, usually two to three hours, is finished. I have prepared students in as little as a week, with nothing compromised due to the rush.
Kaplan, Princeton Review, Ivy West: Kids Teaching Kids
Such companies charge hundreds or even thousands of dollars for their programs but only pay their tutors about twenty bucks an hour, so the tutor turnover is considerable (Ivy West alone has 700 tutors). When your product is a bunch of underpaid, under-experienced kids, it is no wonder that these companies have to spend so much capital on marketing, managing and training, which in turn leaves only enough money to hire more kids, not professional SAT/ACT teachers.
ACT vs. SAT:
How Fast Can You Read?
The ACT is accepted as an alternative to the SAT by all colleges, and could be a better choice for some students. Here are important differences to consider:
The ACT reading and science sections are difficult to finish on time for students who cannot read and think quickly, but the questions are more straight-forward. The SAT reading section, on the other hand, is more tricky and inference-based, but not nearly as hard to finish on time.
The SAT reading section tests vocabulary, the ACT does not.
The ACT has a science section, though it really doesn't test your knowledge of science—all the information is in the passages. It is difficult to finish this section on time.
The ACT math section includes around four trigonometry questions.
One more thing to consider: most colleges (UC's excepted) will combine your highest scores for the math, reading and writing sections on the SAT if you take the test more than once, but they do not combine the highest ACT scores.
I can help you determine whether to prep for the SAT, the ACT, or both, usually by the first session.
When to Start
Prep for & Take the SAT/ACT?
Many students take the PSAT/PLAN in October of their junior year, the SAT/ACT the following March, then again in either May or June (depending on when their AP tests fall), and then once more, if they need to, in October, November or December of their senior year. Ideally, prep should start three months prior to the first test, and that first test should not be taken before the fall of a student's junior year. Here are the pros of starting early:
1. Early prep gives students more options. If they are not happy with their peak reading score, they can form a long term plan to address gaps in vocabulary or reading comprehension that cannot be solved in a matter of weeks but months.
2. High school athletes often like to prep before their season begins in earnest. Also, college coaches usually prefer to know a potential recruit's scores before the summer of the senior year.
3. Taking the test in June of the junior year can be tough; students can be spread thin from AP tests, SAT IIs, and finals.
4. Students have more free time during the summer than they do when they are in school, but waiting until the summer before their senior year is risky.
BUT, if you are considering an early date, a word of caution: sometimes the reading score will not peak as high the first semester of a student's junior year as it will in the second semester simply because a student's reading comprehension and vocabulary continue to improve by being in school.
So if you are considering beginning prep as early as the summer of your junior year, my suggestion is to take a diagnostic test. If your reading score is below 550, you might be better off spending the summer reading and memorizing vocabulary (see below) and waiting until January to begin prep. Otherwise, if you prep over the summer but then are unhappy with your reading score in November and consequently have to wait until March or June to improve your score, you may suffer from major SAT/ACT burn out.
Can't Seem to Get That SAT Reading Score Up?
Non-native speakers and non-readers in general suffer from a vocabulary and idiom deficit, a difficulty comprehending sophisticated sentence structure, and a difficulty interpreting subtle textual context, all of which you will find on the SAT reading section. The solution? Consider switching to the ACT. Or, if you have the time, spend a summer reading and memorizing vocabulary. Try to average memorizing around fifty words and reading three hundred pages per week. Remember, the SAT/ACT is a predictor of how well you will succeed in college, and as such you should see your lopsided score diagnostically: you will most likely suffer from this deficit in college! Therefore, it is well worth addressing in a serious way, and not just for a higher test score.
The question then is, what do you read? How do you read actively? Who is going to hold your feet to the fire when you slack off on vocab? In a word, how can you make the best use of this time given your goal? Weekly sessions can give you the structure and discipline you need to tackle this issue. Click here to see my college prep reading and writing site.
The Best Teachers
Grew up with ADD
Because I grew up with attention deficit, I know the importance of making things as simple and as interesting as possible. To that end, I have designed colorful charts and worksheets which I now use for the benefit all of my students, ADD or otherwise. (Though, when it comes to the SAT/ACT, don't we all have at least a bit of attention deficit?)
The materials and strategies I use are designed to:
1) break the test down into digestible pieces, then
2) evaluate the student's weaknesses, and finally
3) drill each student only on those skills they need to strengthen.
Comparison
Recent Testimonials
Will: November '07 1930 to 2300: 370 points! |
Channing: October '07 ACT 29 to 34 |
Nathan: May '07 1900 to 2180: 280 points |
Max: April '07 SAT 1600 to ACT 1980! |
Kendal: December '06 1720 to 2020: 300 points |
Michelle: December '06 ACT 29 to 34 |
Julia: December '06 2020 to 2250: 230 points |
Nathan: December '06 2080 to 2370: 290 points |
Elena: October '06 1900 to 2250: 350 points |
Leslie: June '05 1650 to 2090: 440 points! |
Maria: October '06 1630 to 1920: 290 points |
Michael: Oct. '05 1430 to 1730: 300 points |
Stephen: October '06 1610 to 1970: 360 points |
Nicki: Oct. '05 1500 to 1840: 340 points |
Frances: December '06 1800 to 2210: 410 points! |
Sophia: June '05 1740 to 2060: 320 points |
Alex: June '06 1760 to 2210: 450 points! |
Peter: June '05 1959 to 2270: 320 points |
Mike (ESL): December '06 ACT from 19 to 26 |
Andrew: June '06 1770 to 2040: 270 points |
Hall of Fame
Nathan McCalone: 2380 '06
Laura Indick: 2370 '08
Danny Jaw: 2350 '06
Chrissy Hu: 2340'06 (ACT)
Matt Peterson: 2310 '07
Will Moritz: 2300 '07
Michelle Lo: 2300 '06 (ACT)
Channing White: 2260 '07 (ACT)
Julia Cabral: 2250 '06
Elena Chacko: 2250 '06
Tiffany Pan: 2240 '07
Arjun's Chakraborty: 2230 '07
Jack Given: 2230 '06
Eric Reveal: 2210 '06
Ashley Carlisle: 2200 '06
Watch a video of me in action!
The HUGE Advantage of
Using Real ETS Test Questions:
Kaplan and their ilk write their own practice questions not because it makes educational sense, but financial sense. The reasons are twofold: 1) Since they have hundreds of thousands of students every year, using their own material is much cheaper than buying real Educational Testing Service (ETS) practice tests, and 2) give credit to the employee who realized that not only can they save money, but that they can even make a buck by selling their materials in bookstores.
The Problem is that these companies' test questions don't live up to the standards of the questions created by the ETS, who has far more resources and is held to a far higher standard than any test prep company. Each ETS question has survived a rigorous process of eradication and refinement by committees of experts whose sole purpose is to generate test questions and answers that are as close to perfect as possible. Each question is under development for over a year, during which it is reviewed at least twelve times by these committees. Every question is also pre-tested (that's what the experimental section is for). Their aim is to make the right answer exact and the wrong answers tricky.
Why does the test have to be perfect? Any charge of inaccuracy or bias would doom it, since it exists only as an objective measuring stick, a standard means of evaluating and ranking students nationally. The ranking in turn is used to validate (or invalidate, for better or worse) students' GPAs.
To really get inside the minds of the test-makers, therefore, is to realize that the right answers AND the wrong answers are generated in predictable ways. It follows, then, that by using official ETS materials, you can push the usual strategies taught by test prep companies much further than they themselves can. Simply put: The more precise a test is, the smarter you can be when you take it! The bigger the bureaucracy, the more predictable the product.
Why Is There an SAT/ACT?
Not all high schools are equal, hence the SAT/ACT—a uniform, standardized test which colleges can use as a national predictor of academic potential. I know that my students have worked hard for their GPA's, so it would be a shame for a lower than average SAT/ACT score to make desirable colleges think that their grades are inflated. On the flip side, the SAT/ACT offers the underachiever an opportunity to show colleges that they really can do better.
Don't Underestimate the Importance of
SAT II Subject Tests: Plan Ahead!
Students who are going to apply to upper-tier schools need to take SAT II subject tests (either two or three depending on the school). Remember:
1. Most colleges weigh the SAT II Subject tests almost as much as the SAT I, and
2. Since only the more exclusive schools require these tests, the pool of students who take them is more competitive. This means that while a 650 may be a decent score on an SAT I section, that same score may translate into a fifty or sixty percentile on the SAT II.
The SAT II tests the following subjects:
Languages: not recommended unless you are a native speaker
Sciences: not recommended unless you have had the AP
US and world history: not recommended unless you have had the AP
Math I and II: most schools will not accept math I
Literature: no facts, but a few literary terms; half the test is poetry
Colleges vary in their policies on SAT II's. Some require three, some two, some none; some schools accept Math Level I, some require Level II; some schools require that the tests be in different disciplines, some do not. The safest route is to look at each school's web site to see its SAT II policy. Also, I highly recommend taking an AP class that has an SAT II equivalent. This not only gives the student extra GPA points, but it offers the BEST way to prepare for that subject's SAT II test. My favorite is AP US History, which also includes a lot of essay writing--something most English classes don't require nearly enough of.
My background in teaching and assisting literature classes as a graduate student at UCB makes me an effective tutor for the SAT II Literature.
Should I Take the SAT Again?
It depends on which schools interest you. All UCs currently have a policy of taking the highest score in one sitting (so that you cannot combine a reading, writing and math score from multiple sittings), which greatly decreases the likelihood that retaking the test would be in your best interest unless you feel you can significantly improve your overall score. Now that there are three sections on the test, however, more schools are rethinking this policy. What is the probability that a student taking a four hour, three-section test won't blow it on at least one part? This recent change in the SAT would have some unlucky students retaking the test again and again to achieve the right balance of reading, writing, essay and math scores. The bottom line is that now most schools combine the highest score on each section from every test the student has taken, so those students who believe that they can increase at least one part of the SAT should take it again.
Math & Grammar Scores Plateaued?
Different students absorb different material at different rates. Since the math and grammar sections require students to learn a certain amount of content, students whose scores in those sections have plateaued need to stop doing new material and start studying previously missed test questions. When this fails to raise their scores, what then? Flashcards! Just the very act of returning to those missed test questions, isolating the obstacles, and making flashcards to best represent and test the solutions to those obstacles is an invaluable process all by itself. The added benefit, of course, is that you now have a personalized set of flash cards to repetitively drill those gaps in your knowledge.
What Parents
Owe Their Kids
I can't tell you how many times I have had the following conversation:
Me: So your reading score this week is much lower than last week's. Can you tell me if anything was different?
Student: I can't think of anything.
Were you tired? Was it the end of the day? When did you eat last?
Student: I did it in the morning, like you told me, and ate a balanced breakfast beforehand.
Me: Was there anything that distracted you while you were reading the passages that kept you from being one hundred percent aware of the text?
Student: Not really. Well, actually, my mother was singing in the kitchen (or, my little brother was playing loud video games, or, my father was watching the football game and I could hear it in the living room, or, we got a new puppy and he barks a lot, or, our bathrooms are being remodeled, or, my sister is back from college and was talking loudly on the phone, or, the gardeners were blowing the leaves...)
Parents need to understand that the SAT and ACT passages can be about as boring a read as you can imagine. Moreover, the reading is timed. If the student has to deal with distractions, they will obviously compromise that student's performance.
But it does even worse.
Think of this analogy: an athlete sustains an injury which compromises her technique. She has a big game coming, so she practices regardless. What happens? She is unlearning good technique, and learning an inferior technique in its place. The practicing has actually hurt, not helped. The moral is, make sure your kid has a quiet place to train, especially for the reading passages, which require sustained, one hundred percent focus. If it can't be done at home, find a place where it can.