Stephen Listman
INDEPENDENT PACING | With the flexible schedule that the SAT prep class offers, Sabas has the ability to work at her own pace and tackle her hardest areas of study whenever she needs. “If you need more help on math, you can work more on math and if you needed more English help – you would normally just work on the stuff you need help with,” Sabas said.
When it comes to the SAT, junior Kristina-Marie Sabas feels, as many highschoolers across the country feel, a sense of dread. However, due to the newly introduced SAT prep class, Sabas has the ability to immerse herself in a national test without fear.
Designed to follow an individualized course of study, the SAT Prep course provides students with the chance to tackle SAT-style questions through Khan Academy – a program that contains practice questions directly modeled after the SAT as well as the inclusion of artificial intelligence via “Khanmigo,” a Khan Academy chatbot – and move through it freely at their own pace. Sarah Edwards, one of the two SAT prep teachers, believes this approach benefits each student exponentially.
“Every student has [such] different needs that using the Khan Academy, and artificial intelligence support there, really makes a more efficient use of the time and lets students go not just at the pace that’s best for them, but in the direction that’s best for them, too,” Edwards said.
Due to the independent nature of the course, students of all backgrounds are able to come together and work as well as make goals for themselves, something that Edwards values more than just a potential score boost.
“In all of my classes, students have different grade levels, different courses, different instructors,” Edwards said. “So it’s neat to be able to bring all those different approaches, not just abilities, not just ages, but also different approaches to solving some of these problems. [The] first thing that we did this year was do some goal setting, both academically and personally. And so I feel like I’ve gotten a little glimpse into what students want to be able to do for themselves.”
Goal setting is one way for a student to be prepared for the SAT. For most though, the ultimate goal for the SAT is setting oneself up for future success. A good SAT score sets students up for success because it can open doors when choosing what college they will attend. In hopes of achieving a high score for college applications, Sabas was motivated to sign up for the class.
“For this class, well I’m taking it so that I improve my SAT scores for colleges that I really want to get into because most of them do require the SAT scores and most of them have pretty high ones,” Sabas said. “So I just really want to improve my scores.”
After studying for and taking the SAT last year, senior Caleb Kosel believes practice tests are essential for SAT preparedness. Kosel prefers practice tests as they allow test takers to find areas of struggle and target those areas for future improvement. This class provides that opportunity for its students.
“You have to actively know where you stand with the practice tests and then after you take said practice test you need to check your errors and with each error correct it,” Kosel said.
After last year’s push for extra practice within both English and math classes led to the 12% growth in math and the 11% growth in English reading and writing, SAT tutor and retired English teacher Andrew Montague only sees scores improving, especially due to the voluntary nature of the program.
“I would expect for the student that really is interested, and they’ve self-selected this class– they elected it, and so I think that, in and of itself, will help them,” Montague said.
This year’s new SAT Prep class is instructed by a certified Grosse Pointe teacher, however, the curriculum surrounds Khan Academy’s AI platform Khanmigo which tailors instruction to areas where the student has growth potential. The SAT Prep class is not required to graduate but can be taken in place of an elective or tutorial period. If you are interested in this opportunity, fill out this form.
