Reading Test

In the Reading Test, students will encounter questions like those asked in a lively,
thoughtful, evidence-based discussion.

Quick Facts

All Reading Test questions are multiple choice and based on passages.

Some passages are paired with other passages or informational graphics, such as
charts, graphs, and tables.

No mathematical computation is required.

Prior topic-specific knowledge is never tested.

The Reading-Writing Connection

All assessments in the SAT Suite of Assessments will include a Reading Test and
a Writing and Language Test. A students scores on these two tests are combined to
arrive at a section score for Evidence-Based Reading and Writing.
The exam structure reflects the relationship between these two literacy skills and their
shared focus on textual evidence, relevant words in context, and application of skills
across the curriculum.

Passages
All Reading Test passages are selected from previously published works and represent
some of the best writing and thinking in the fields of classic and contemporary U.S. and
world literature, history/social studies, and science. The passages on the Reading Test
vary in complexity, ranging from texts like those found in challenging courses in grades
nine and 10 to texts comparable to those assigned in typical college-level, creditbearing courses. The test asks students to base their answers on what is stated or
implied in the passages and any accompanying supplementary material, such as
informational graphics.
Some history and social studies passages are selections from U.S. founding documents
and the texts they have inspired. Engaging and often culturally and historically
important, they wrestle with problems at the heart of civic and political life. Other

passages discuss topics in economics, psychology, sociology, and other social

sciences.
Science passages examine both foundational concepts and recent developments in
biology, chemistry, physics, and Earth science.

Distinctive Features
The Reading Test will support the redesigned SATs emphasis on analysis in
history/social studies passages; the interpretation of words in context and command of
evidence will be highlighted in science passages.
Literacy across the curriculum is of primary importance; questions will test students on
analysis in history/social studies and analysis in science. In many cases, students
will need to make use of the ways of thinking important to a particular field to analyze
passages and graphics. For example:

Science passages may be paired with questions focused on hypotheses,

experimentation, and data.

Literature passages may be paired with questions focused on theme, mood, and
characterization.

SAT words will no longer be vocabulary students may not have heard before and are
not likely to hear again. Instead, the SAT will focus on words that derive their meaning
from the contexts in which they are used.
Some questions will test how well students understand words in context. These are
words and phrases used widely in college and career texts, the meaning of which
depends on how theyre used in particular situations. Students will need to use the
context clues they find in passages to determine the precise meaning of words and
phrases that the author intended.
The Reading Test will assess three facets of command of evidence:

The use of evidence: Students will need to find the evidence in a passage that best
supports the answer to a previous question or that serves as the basis for a reasonable
conclusion.

The analysis of an argument: Students will need to identify the way authors use
evidence to support their claims.

The analysis of quantitative information: Students will need to examine informational

graphics and relate the information conveyed by them to the information and ideas
conveyed through words.

Informational Graphics
The Reading Test includes two passages accompanied by one or two related graphics
(for example, charts, graphs, or tables). Students will be asked to interpret a graphics
meaning and make connections between graphic and passage. However, theyll never
need to use mathematical computation to answer the questions.

Writing and Language Test

The Writing and Language Test puts students in the active role of an editor who is
improving a written passage. Most questions ask students to decide which, if any, of the
three alternatives to an underlined part of a passage most improves it.

Quick Facts

All Writing and Language Test questions are multiple choice and based on passages.

Some passages are paired with informational graphics such as charts, graphs, and
tables.

Prior topic-specific knowledge is never tested.

No mathematical computation is required.

The ReadingWriting Connection

All components of the redesigned SAT Suite of Assessments will include a Reading
Test and a Writing and Language Test. A students scores on these two tests are
combined to arrive at a section score for Evidence-Based Reading and Writing.
The test structure reflects the relationship between these two literacy skills and their
shared focus on textual evidence, words in context, and application of skills across the
curriculum.

Passages
All Writing and Language passages will be created especially for the test so that errors
can be intentionally introduced. Passages will be several paragraphs long so that
students can engage in complex, real-world revision and editing tasks, and students will
often need to have a good understanding of one or more paragraphs, or even the entire
passage, to answer a particular question. The passages on the Writing and Language
Test vary in complexity, ranging from texts like those found in challenging courses in
grades 9 and 10 to texts comparable to those found in typical college-level, creditbearing courses.
Passages take the form of arguments, informative/explanatory texts, or nonfiction
narratives. They address topics related to careers, history/social studies, the
humanities, and science.

Distinctive Features
The Writing and Language Test will support the redesigned SATs emphasis on analysis
in history/social studies passages, and the interpretation of words in context and
command of evidence in science passages.
Some questions will test students on the expression of ideas. These questions ask
students to improve topic development, organization, and rhetorical effectiveness. This
category includes passages on the topics of science and history/social studies. Thus,
some Writing and Language Test questions will also test students on analysis in
science and analysis in history/social studies.
Other questions test students on their understanding of standard English
conventions. These ask students to edit text so that words, phrases, sentences, and
punctuation are used appropriately and in a way that is consistent with the practices of
standard written English.
As on the Reading Test, some Writing and Language Test questions assess how well
students understand words in context. These questions ask students to improve
passages by using words carefully and with purpose.
Students command of evidence is also assessed by some questions on the Writing
and Language Test, as on the Reading Test. These questions assess how well students
revise a passage to improve the way it develops information and ideas.

Informational Graphics
The Writing and Language Test includes some passages that are paired with tables,
charts, graphs, and other informational graphics. Students will be asked to draw
connections between the graphics and the text they accompany. For example, students
might need to correct a passages inaccurate interpretation of the data presented in a
table or to improve the clarity or precision of that interpretation. However, theyll never
need to use mathematical computation to answer the questions.

Math Test
The Math Test focuses on the math that matters most to college and career readiness.
To succeed on the Math Test, students will need to demonstrate mathematical
practices, such as problem solving and using appropriate tools strategically.

Quick Facts

Most math questions will be multiple choice, but some will be student-produced
responses (grid-ins).

The Math Test is divided into two portions: Math Test Calculator and Math Test No
Calculator.

Some parts of the test present students with a scenario and then ask several questions
about it.

Distinctive Features
The Math Test is characterized by questions that:

Test mathematical reasoning in a way that reflects the work students are doing in
classrooms across the country.

Emphasize fluency and understanding.

Ask students to solve problems grounded in science, social science, career scenarios,
and other real-life contexts.

The test covers all math practices, with an emphasis on problem solving, modeling,
using appropriate tools strategically, and recognizing and using algebraic structure.

Student-Produced Response Questions

Although most of the questions on the Math Test are multiple choice, a percentage of
the questions from 17 percent to 22 percent, depending on the assessment are
student-produced response questions, also known as grid-ins. Instead of choosing a
correct answer from a list of options, students are required to solve problems and enter
their answers in the grids provided on the answer sheet.
Sometimes students will be asked several questions about the same scenario, allowing
them to dig in to a situation and model it mathematically. These multistep applications
reflect the complexity of real-life problem solving in science, social science, and career
contexts.

Gridding-In Answers

Mark no more than one circle in any column.

Only answers indicated by filling in the circle will be scored (students do not receive
credit for anything written in the boxes located above the circles).

It doesn't matter in which column students begin entering their answers; as long as the
responses are recorded within the grid area, students will receive credit.

The grid can hold only four decimal places and can only accommodate positive numbers
and zero.

Unless a problem indicates otherwise, answers can be entered on the grid as a decimal
or a fraction.

Fractions like

All mixed numbers need to be converted to improper fractions before being recorded in

do not need to be reduced to their lowest terms.

the grid.

If the answer is a repeating decimal, students must grid the most accurate value the grid
will accommodate.

Below is a sample of the instructions students will see on the test.

Calculator Use
Students will be allowed to use a calculator on one of two portions of the Math Test.
Calculators are important mathematical tools, and to succeed after high school,
students have to know how to use them effectively and appropriately. In the Math Test
Calculator portion of the test, students can use their calculator to make computations
more efficiently, enabling them to focus on complex modeling and reasoning. However,
the calculator is a tool that students must use strategically, deciding when to use it
and when not to. There will be some Calculator: Permitted questions that can be
answered more efficiently without a calculator. In these cases, students who make use
of structure or their ability to reason will most likely reach the solution more rapidly than
students who use a calculator.
The Math Test No Calculator portion of the test makes it easier to assess students
fluency in math and their understanding of some math concepts. It also tests welllearned technique and number sense.

Components of Mathematical Proficiency

The Math Test assesses fluency with mathematical procedures, conceptual
understanding, and applications with equal intensity, as they are the primary
components of mathematical proficiency.

Fluency
For the Math Test, fluency is a skill in carrying out procedures flexibly, accurately, and
efficiently with strategic competence. That is, students are expected to demonstrate a
reasonable quickness when solving problems by identifying and using the most efficient
solution approaches, such as solving a problem by inspection, using their mathematical
understanding and skills to find a shortcut, or reorganizing the information given.

Conceptual Understanding
The Math Test requires students to demonstrate conceptual understanding by
demonstrating mastery of mathematical concepts, operations, and relations. For
example, questions may require making connections between properties of linear
equations, their graphs, and the contexts they represent.

Applications
Applications on the Math Test require students to demonstrate the ability to analyze a
situation, determine the essential elements required to solve the problem, represent the
problem mathematically, and carry out a solution. Application problems are set in the
real world. Many of these problems are set in academic and career settings and are
likely to draw from the sciences and social sciences.

SAT Essay
The redesigned SAT Essay will assess whether students can demonstrate college and
career readiness proficiency in reading, writing, and analysis. The SAT Essay will ask
students to demonstrate comprehension of a high-quality source text by producing a
cogent and clear written analysis of that text supported by critical reasoning and
evidence drawn from the source.
Students will be asked to:

Read a passage.

Explain how the author builds an argument to persuade an audience.

Support their explanation with evidence from the passage.

Quick Facts

The redesigned SAT Essay closely mirrors common postsecondary writing assignments.

It will be scored using clearly defined and widely communicated criteria focused on
reading, analysis, and writing.

The source text will change every time the SAT is given, but the task will stay the same.

Prior topic-specific knowledge is never tested.

Important Changes
The redesigned SAT Essay differs from the essay section on the current SAT in several
important ways:

Students will have 50 minutes to complete their essay not 25, as is the case on the
current SAT.

Students will no longer be asked to agree or disagree with a position on a topic or to

write about their personal experience.

The SAT Essay will no longer be required of everyone who takes the SAT; individual
colleges and universities will determine whether they choose to require SAT Essay
scores from prospective students.

The three SAT Essay scores will be reported separately from each other (rather than
combined into a single score) and from the other scores on the test.

Note: Students who take the current SAT before spring 2016 must complete an essay;
their essay scores contribute to the Writing and composite scores.

Passages
All passages are selected from previously published, high-quality sources. Passages
will vary each time the test is given, but all will:

Address a broad audience.

Convey an argument.

Express nuanced views on complex subjects.

Use logical reasoning and various forms of evidence to support substantive claims.

Examine ideas, debates, trends, and the like in the arts, the sciences, and civic, cultural,
and political life.

The passages are carefully chosen to ensure that they are appropriately and
consistently complex challenging enough to assess college and career readiness but
not so challenging that they keep students from responding under timed conditions.

Reading, Analysis, Writing

Students essays should demonstrate an understanding of the passage and use
evidence from the passage to support an effective, well-written analysis of how the
author builds an argument to persuade an audience. Students will be instructed to focus
their discussion on the passages most relevant features. Essays should make
purposeful, selective, substantive use of quotations and paraphrases in a way that
supports students analysis.
Students essays are evaluated in terms of reading, analysis, and writing:

Reading: Successful essays demonstrate thorough comprehension of the passage,

including the interplay of central ideas and important details, and use textual evidence
effectively.
Analysis: Successful essays demonstrate skill in evaluating the authors use of
evidence, reasoning, style, and other stylistic or persuasive techniques and support and
develop claims with well-chosen evidence from the passage.
Writing: Successful essays are focused, organized, and precise, with an appropriate
style and tone that varies sentence structure and follows the conventions of standard
written English.