86 Holiday Gifts Just for You

No matter what you celebrate this holiday season, wouldn't you like a gift? 

Well, what about 86 of them? 

Time to open your gifts: here is a list of 86 colleges with test-blind, test-free or score-free admissions policies for Fall 2022 (or beyond). 

That's right. Over 80 schools won't consider SAT or ACT scores in their process of admission including all campuses of the UC system, California Institute of Technology, Dickinson College, and many other excellent schools. 

What great gifts. If any of these schools are your dream schools, then don't stress about SAT and ACT prep. 

Instead of spending the time, money and energy gearing up for standardized tests for these schools, spend that time, money and energy working on the things these schools value, namely GPA, academic rigor and extracurricular commitments. 

Happy Holidays from CROSSWALK! We wish you all a stress-free holiday season. 

Maximize Test Prep This Vacation (with Minimal Work)

Attention Juniors: I know you are stressed from the last several months of school. You are ready for a break. And the last thing you want to do is study over Christmas vacation. 

But if want to open up opportunities for college admissions and merit-based aid, you may want to spend a little time preparing for the SAT or ACT. Just a little. 

So while you get lost of rest and relaxation this vacation, try this simple eight-day plan that only takes about eight hours in total in order to maximize your test prep over Christmas break with minimal work: 

Day 1: Find your goal score. Look up 3-4 schools you are interested in and find out their testing policies and, assuming they are test-optional or require a test, what SAT or ACT score you need. Determining this score is the first step in understanding what you need to do. Estimated time: 15-20 minutes. 

Day 2: Take a practice test. Download a practice SAT or ACT directly from the respective websites and print it out. In one sitting, to take the entire test cover to cover per the exact instructions and timing. Estimated time: 3 hours. 

Day 3: Score the test. Using the instructions from the test websites, score your test. Calculate your scaled score according to the instructions and compare it to your goal score from the Day 1 activity. Figure out the incremental number of correct answers you need to achieve your goal score for your next test sitting. Estimated time: 1 hour. 

Day 4: Identify your weaknesses. Review the practice test and document each question you missed and why you missed it. Review your results and see if there are any themes. Try and uncover your weaknesses, like vocabulary-in-context questions in reading or word problems in math. Estimated time: 1 hour. 

Days 5-7: Attack weaknesses. Research how to get better at your weaknesses. Find a vocabulary list to study. Look up math content on Khan Academy. Practice reading passages. Get better at those things that are weakest. Estimated time: 30 minutes/day or 1.5 hours in total. 

Day 8: Register for the real test. Check your calendar and find the test day most convenient, as in the least stressful time, for your to take the test. Estimated time: 30 minutes. 

If you follow this eight-day plan, you will be armed with the data from a practice test, a goal score and an idea of things you can work on. Ultimately, this plan will maximize your test preparation over Christmas break with minimal work. 

It's not a complicated plan and if you do all of the steps, your total time investment would be roughly eight hours. Not bad, right? I know you can carve out just eight hours in a two-week vacation. It will be worth it. 

And if you want, sign up for CROSSWALK's Winter Test Prep series starting in February. If you execute this vacation plan AND take CROSSWALK's six-week course, you will be on your way to maximizing your test score to increase your chances for college admission and merit-based aid.     

So Many Thanks

During this week of Thanksgiving, there are so many thanks to share.

Thanks to the Salinas Unified School District for helping me host a six-week SAT and ACT prep course this past fall. 

Thanks to York School for making me a part of their inaugural York Summer Bridge program and their fall test prep program. 

Thanks to South County Cal-SOAP for inviting me to offer support to their strategic planning and student programming. 

Thanks to Stevenson School for allowing me to help their students navigate the testing landscape. 

Thanks to our many CROSSWALK families who entrust us to help guide and tutor their students. 

Thanks to Independent Counselors, like Marisela Gomez of Inspired and Jane Catanzaro of College Advising Services for the referrals and support. 

Thanks to the many hardworking college counselors in the Monterey Peninsula area for helping our high school juniors and seniors plan for beyond high school. 

Thanks to my family for putting up with my dynamic schedule as a tutor. 

And thanks to anyone who I failed to mention who helped me and CROSSWALK over the years.

Indeed, a time to give so many thanks. 

The Hardest Part of the SAT and ACT

On the SAT & ACT, what is the hardest section? 

Are historical passages or science-based passages more difficult? 

Are word problems or data interpretation problems more challenging? 

Truth be told: It depends. 

Determining the difficulty level of particular questions or sections on the SAT and the ACT all depends on the student. Some students find the Reading section the easiest while others think it is Math. Science passages, for some students, are easier than history passages. And some students hate word problems and would rather graph parabolas. 

However, none of these questions really get at what makes the SAT and ACT hard. 

You see, the hardest part of the SAT and the ACT is the length of the tests. Both tests are three-hour mental marathons that require tremendous focus, rapt attention and intellectual endurance. 

What makes these tests hard is that students need the mental stamina to critically think, problem solve and navigate the hours upon hours that is the testing experience. 

If you are gearing up for the SAT or ACT, make sure to work on your mental stamina. Take regular full-length practice tests so that you can practice sustaining your intellectual energy for the entire test. Work on building up your stamina and keeping focused for all three hours. 

It's not a content thing; it's a stamina thing. Those with the mental fortitude to sustain their intellectual focus for the whole time will be the ones who achieve their goal scores.

What Makes an "Honors" Student?

Full credit to one of my mentors for this post. Though he has been retired now for several years, his perspective on what constitutes an honors student still resonates today. 

When assessing whether or not a student was qualified for an honors or AP course, he would drill down to three characteristics: willingness, aptitude and interest. 

Willingness is the desire or eagerness to do extra work. Most honors courses require students to go above and beyond the regular course content. Thus, an honors student must be willing to do extra. 

Aptitude is the ability or the natural inclination to excel academically. To be an honors student, one must have some natural ability already. This can come in the form of a variety of skills like critical thinking, reading, reasoning, logic, public speaking, etc. 

Interest is passion for or great curiosity in the subject matter. Honors students have a keen interest in the material and seek out opportunities to learn as much as they can. They are sponges who yearn for more. 

But here is the best part of these characteristics: an honors student need not have all three. Instead, according to my mentor, as long as the student had at least two of the three characteristics, then that student could very well excel at the honors level. 

Simple yet elegant: an honors student is one who is either willing and apt, apt and interested, or willing and interested. 

Students: if you have two of those three qualities, then consider yourself an honors student. 

And if you lack more than one of these characteristics, then maybe the honors level for a given subject is not for you? And that is okay. You need not be a high-achieving honors student across all academic disciplines. 

Unfortunately, so many families and students push the honors track because they see that as the path to college opportunities. Yes, academic rigor can help your prospects. But if you lack the aptitude, the willingness and the interest, why force it? 

Take a Practice SAT

On Saturday, the team at CROSSWALK will proctor a full-length practice SAT test as part of our six-week program for students of the Salinas Union High School District. 

Practice tests are hugely beneficial in test prep for obvious reasons. Namely, students get to experience the time management and mental endurance needed to take on a full-length SAT. 

After all, the SAT and ACT are not much more than mental marathons. And the course of these particular marathons are the exact same every time. Sure, the questions might vary, but the directions, content, sections, order, and timing are all the same. Every time. E-v-e-r-y t-i-m-e. 

So it can only help to practice a test marathon to see how you do. 

Following the practice test, the students in our program will score their performance and analyze their own results. The scoring and analysis is a crucial step in identifying strengths or weaknesses as well as understanding how many more correct answers a student needs to target in order to achieve a goal score. 

So if you are preparing for the SAT or ACT, be sure to incorporate at least one full-length practice test in your preparation. 

Shorter practice sets, like the ones on Khan Academy, are helpful. But there is nothing like a full-length practice test to assess your mental stamina. 

Download full length practice SATs right here. Or find a full length ACT to practice here. 

As always, if you need help, contact CROSSWALK.  

3 Compelling Reasons to Start a Study Group

"Alone we can do so little, together we can do so much." -Helen Keller 

When facing a challenge, would you rather go at it alone? Or with a team of like-minded individuals focused on a common goal? 

Individuals can accomplish great things but just about anything is easier with a team. 

Especially learning. 

With study groups, learning is enhanced. Consider these three compelling reasons why a study group is a great way to learn: 

1) Increased knowledge: Several brains are smarter than one. With a study group, students can leverage the knowledge and perspective of their team members. So instead of one brain doing all of the thinking, several brains can do it. 

2) Increased motivation: When working with a team, students can be more motivated to complete tasks. As the team focuses on its learning goals, individuals can be motivated to contribute to the team more than they would be just working on their own tasks. 

3) Increased accountability: Since the team relies on its individuals to move forward, team members are accountable to their group and not just to themselves. The added layer of accountability means students are more likely to accomplish their tasks since the team expects them to do so. Individuals can often procrastinate but when one is part of team, procrastination is selfish and therefore less likely. And if the study group keeps a calendar or regular meetings, members can easily focus on the tasks that need to be done. 

The curious thing with all of this is that many students are afraid to create their own study groups. Sometimes students are eager to work with a group but often I see students afraid to admit they need help from a group. Perhaps in our ultra-connected, social media-dominated and information-at-your-finger-tips world, students think they can solve all of their problems by themselves. 

Yet the fact is undeniable: a study group is a very effective way to learn more, accomplish more and achieve academic goals. 

Sure, there are drawbacks of study groups. Sometimes team members don't contribute. Sometimes it is hard to schedule meetings. And sometimes personalities take over the group. 

So assuming you can find a group of like-minded individuals focused on a common goal, why wouldn't you at least try and get a study group together? Gather a group to complete tasks, review material, take practice tests or otherwise focus on study goals. Treat it like a book club: invite people interested in the subject matter, schedule regular meetings and make the meetings enjoyable. 

If you need help creating a study group or otherwise finding ways to be more successful in your learning, contact CROSSWALK. We specialize in learning, tutoring and test prep for all types of learners.