Hello. The SAT Chemistry exam was scheduled to take place in Seoul this time.
It didn't seem to be going ahead in other countries.
I've received many inquiries about preparing for it.
In my experience, students at international schools in Korea could sometimes earn 800 in SAT Chemistry without too much difficulty.
But it could be difficult for a student who hadn't prepared ahead of time.
There haven't been many 800s this year because so many SAT sittings were canceled.
Last year alone, more than 10 of my students earned 800 in SAT Chemistry. All but one or two scored above 780,
and many of those received full marks.
When I say that, some people come for a consultation assuming anyone can get 800.
But most students who got 800 had worked extremely hard for one or two months and were already strong academically.
If that isn't your starting point, 800 is by no means easy.
Even a very capable student can struggle when studying alone.
That's because SAT Chemistry tested a defined range of material, and the textbook didn't tell you precisely what to prioritize.
Reading Barron's or Kaplan didn't completely solve that problem.
So students studying alone often ended up studying far more than the exam required.
Sometimes they were memorizing odd, unnecessary details. Of course, an exceptionally bright student who memorizes easily might learn everything
in the book and still have capacity left, but most students can't do that.
I therefore think knowing where the questions come from is one of the most important things.
If you ask how to figure that out, I don't have a simple answer.
But students attending international schools or autonomous private high schools in Korea can often find
a good tutor or academy by looking around locally. Relying on some guidance before the exam can reduce trial and error.
A little support can help you study more accurately and avoid wasted effort.
I also think SAT preparation is, to a considerable extent, a competition over access to materials. I mean that sincerely.
It's discouraging to say this, but the SAT subject tests often repeated familiar questions and patterns.
That meant students who had practiced many past papers before the exam were likely to do well.
Unfortunately, simply working through lots of past papers repeatedly could produce high scores.
Then you'll ask where to get those materials.
Again, I find myself saying that tutors and academies could help.
As I write this, it almost feels as though exam scores can be bought with money.
So let's look at how students could study without paying for tuition, although it wasn't my personal recommendation.
Start by completing the questions in Barron's and Kaplan.
Then complete the practice tests and obtain commercially available past-paper material, including material sold through retailers such as Amazon.
It might be slower, but substantial question practice should take students a considerable way.
For questions you don't understand, ask on Reddit or other websites and work toward an explanation.
Doing that one question at a time should eventually improve your ability.
The more I teach SAT, AP, and IB courses, the more I feel this.
The degree varies, but tutors and academies often provide a route that saves time.
It's an unfortunate reality. With SAT and AP, I sometimes feel I could help a student reach 800 or 5 if we could devote enough time to it.
Of course, the student would still need a certain amount of ability and determination.
But providing the amount of teaching time I would want places a real financial burden on parents.
Watching students who can afford that support achieve the highest scores sometimes leaves me feeling conflicted.
I teach at least four lessons a day, but relatively few students take lessons with me every day of the week.
Most come once a week, and some come twice.
Almost all my lessons are groups rather than private sessions, whether locally or online.
Yet some students can afford private lessons throughout the week without worrying about the cost.
They're usually trying to finish something in a short period.
Those students often achieved good results. Perhaps it was because they arrived with such firm determination.
Students who came for three or four hours a day, worked intensively for a short period, and then left seemed exceptionally driven.
At times I was so exhausted that I wanted to postpone lessons, yet couldn't. Even when teaching felt almost unbearably tiring,
some students simply kept working quietly without complaint.
Many achieved the result they wanted after three or four hours of lessons a day for a full month.
But few students can afford three or four hours of private lessons with me every day for one or two months.
Seeing that those who did usually obtained strong results made me proud,
but it also left me with considerable doubts about the situation.
With this SAT sitting approaching, I'm getting inquiries from many places.
Some students want help all day; some parents want only a few sessions. The requests vary enormously.
My schedule is already full, so I can only fit in a few places. In some cases, I have explained that I can't teach daily and will assign a lot of homework,
then agreed to help.
But above all, the student's determination matters. However many lessons I provide, if their attitude isn't right,
there is a limit to what can be achieved. I sometimes stop teaching or decline those students because the stress is enormous.
Anyway, good luck with the June 6 SAT Chemistry exam! Ah—but the exam has now been canceled.