NYT: Strivers Sharpen No. 2's for Different College Test (new SAT v ACT)

Strivers Sharpen No. 2's for Different College Test
By TAMAR LEWIN

Published: March 4, 2005


....The new four-hour SAT makes its debut March 12, but already, the hypercompetitive have begun taking two admission tests, breaking the kind of red-state, blue-state divide that has existed for decades, with the SAT dominant on the East and West coasts, and the Iowa-based ACT the choice throughout the Midwest. Most colleges accept either one.

This year, ACT officials said, the number of East Coast students taking the February ACT increased 22 percent over last year - and in New Jersey, Washington, D.C., and Vermont, the number more than doubled.

Most students will score about the same on both tests. But the anxiety-inducing features of the new SAT - the 25-minute essay, slightly harder math questions, and an overall length of nearly four hours - has set students and their advisers to exploring all their options....

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There are some real differences between the tests. The SAT began as an aptitude test, designed to measure students' reasoning abilities. The ACT has always been more tied to curriculum, measuring what students have learned in the four areas it covers: English, mathematics, reading and science.

The SAT penalizes a test-taker for guessing incorrectly; the ACT does not. The new SAT essay is required, while the new ACT essay is optional. And while SAT essay topics tend toward the philosophical ("the world is getting better all the time"), ACT topics are more practical (the merits of school uniforms)....


http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/04/education/04SAT.html