By Emily Gilburt ‘16

Junior year is commonly cited as the most stressful year of high school. In addition to pressures to do well in class, many juniors are also tasked with taking the SAT, ACT or both.

According to a survey of Sherwood juniors from Honors English 11 and AP Language and Composition, 96 percent of teens said the SAT and ACT adds stress to their lives. “It’s really difficult to balance all my APs, along with my social life, family life and extracurricular life while having to squeeze in time to study for a test that isn’t even relevant to what I study in class,” said junior Gilly Reed.

Although approximately 70 percent of students will take the SAT or ACT during their junior year, many question if the tests are an effective way to evaluate their academic abilities. “We work hard enough on our grades. Why take this long, stressful and pointless test to determine our future?” wrote junior Bailey Doan.

Most students believe that college testing does not actually represent their acquired knowledge, but their test-taking skills. “The SAT and ACT [are] not proper ways to measure a person’s performance for college because some students will fail a class but can score a 2,000 [on the SAT],” said junior John Shin.

87 percent of students surveyed disagree with the use of the SAT and ACT to predict college readiness. “It’s a test that takes a long period of time, and I think kids are not used to sitting and concentrating. The ACT and SAT are both challenging tests, especially for that period of time,” said College Test Prep teacher Linda Glixon, who instructs students for the verbal and writing sections.

About 55 percent of teens surveyed claimed they do not feel prepared to take the SAT or ACT, and 26 percent said they aren’t sure if they’re ready. Although the tests are intimidating, there are a variety of ways students can work to improve their scores. According to Glixon, learning test strategies are key to succeeding when taking college admission tests. However, making a habit of reading will pay off on the verbal and writing sections. “Do the best you can, read as much as you can. Read elevated articles to challenge yourself and make it a hobby to do vocabulary. Every time you come across a word you don’t know, write it down, learn it and use it,” said Glixon.