Angelene Woo
Last Saturday,
January 23, sixty-one students showed up at Dalat International School to take
the SAT Reasoning Test and the SAT Subject Tests.
I was there to
witness the horrendous effects of the sinister and suffocating SAT. Many
students broke out in cold sweats. Some complained of shaky, sweaty hands when
trying to write the essay, and others even experienced shortness of breath and
heart palpitations. On the verge of a nervous breakdown, Keito Watanabe (11)
reported abnormally cold toes and a headache. "I had been studying for
about a month for this SAT, but even with this much studying, my mind was still
in a panicked state. Sleepless nights continued as I worried about the
expectations from my parents and my future college. I felt hopeless; it was as
if I was swimming in a pool filled with hot, blazing lava."
One rare fellow,
however, was rather nonchalant and apathetic towards the test. Mathias Maurin
(11) said, “The SAT didn't worry me too much. I figure that if I did my best,
results would follow. I don't think that one score from one test will determine
the course of your entire life.” But it is
one of the major determining factors for individuals’ entire college and
career, save for school performance! It can almost demolish the dream career
one has mapped out!
Unlike Maurin, many
students gave up numerous luxuries during the Christmas break to study for the
stressful SAT. Several students sacrificed precious hours of sleep to study.
Some studied on the plane rides overseas for holidays, giving up the
opportunity to watch movies from the airline’s diverse selection. Once break
was over, a few even stayed after school to acquire teachers’ help.
The Scholastic
Aptitude Test consists of many tricky questions that assess reading, writing,
and math in the Reasoning Test and specific languages, math, sciences,
literature, and history, in the Subject Tests. In preparation for applying to
colleges and universities, many unfortunate students suffer through the 3-hour
and 45-minute Reasoning Test, me being one of them. The Subject Tests allow
students to show colleges the subjects in which they excel.
If you are ever on
a sadistic streak and are looking to inflict pain upon yourself, sign up for
the SAT.
