New SAT Takers: Confused Yet?
THE NEW YORK TIMES | January 30, 2005 | By JENNIFER MEDINA

This was also the feeling among private tutors at Inspirica, a New York-based company, and from Ms. Gill's firm, Carol Gill Associates. Many said students should simply take the test as soon as they feel ready.

Lisa Jacobson, chief executive of Inspirica, concurred, saying: "The fewer tests these kids can take, the better. You're in the middle of it now and students just don't know what to do. If they aren't educated about what the options are, they are going to be more stressed out."

Ms. Jacobson, who leads seminars on differences between the old and the new SAT's, says that when it comes to knowing what to expect, she perceives more worry and uncertainty among suburban parents than those who live in the city.

"The farther you get out from Manhattan, they start later and find it more frustrating," she said. "The culture has changed under people's feet. Many people went to these schools, but don't know how things work now."

At one of Inspirica's sessions last week, more than a dozen Manhattan parents chatted, comparing notes and swapping friendly stories about their children's progress in chemistry and Spanish. A handful of parents from Westchester came in quietly and kept to themselves.

Standing before the group, Ms. Jacobson drew a line to divide a large piece of paper in half, writing "old" on top of one column and "new" across the other. The old test was about aptitude, she explained; the new test is more about measuring achievement.

"We think this is a good thing," she explained to the crowd of anxious parents. "It measures more of what they are already learning in school."

But the speculation continues, even as tutors, counselors and teachers try to assuage fears and slow down the rumor mill.

Ms. Jacobson's advice on that topic: "You have to find somebody you can really trust rather than anyone you run into at the supermarket. Otherwise everything just feeds the frenzy."

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