The two college entrance exams have announced fundamental changes to their tests, effective in 2015 and 2016, respectively.
The SAT will not change its format, but the types of questions offered in each subject section will undergo a transformation. The critical reading vocabulary will shift away from words that seem to be found only on the SAT to include words more relevant to everyday life.
The math section will place heavier emphasis on topics that better predict college performance, such as proportional reasoning, linear equations and linear functions.
The writing section will change its primary emphasis from building and supporting an argument to accurately analyzing facts and evidence, thus discouraging students from simply making up facts to argue their point.
The ACT will begin to offer an adaptive, computer-based test alongside the traditional paper-and-pencil format. Students taking this electronic test will encounter questions asking them to perform virtual tasks – such as changing the pressure of a gas tank or pouring liquids into virtual beakers – before composing predictive answers based on their experiments.
