The media has been buzzing about the upcoming changes to the SAT.  We have had parents ask – What does this mean for the SSAT?

First of all, although the test names are similar, the SAT and SSAT are produced by two different organizations.  Changes to the SAT do not mean that the SSAT is necessarily changing.  However, the update of the SAT reflects a shift in the national thinking about standardized testing and the SSAT is likely to evolve as well.

We communicated with the SSAT board about potential changes to the SSAT.  Their representative let us know that there will be no drastic changes to the SSAT in the short term.  There may be minor updates, but not a major redo.

What about the quarter point “guessing penalty”?  The SAT is dropping it.  A couple of years ago, the SSATB talked about dropping it as well but has since backed away from that stance.  The quarter point deduction for missed questions will remain for now on the SSAT.

The SAT is dropping the arcane vocabulary (words like “arcane”), does that mean that the SSAT will change the verbal reasoning section?  There are no current plans to change or do away with the synonyms and analogies on the SSAT.