SAT Prep: Why MEK Students Score Higher

What to Expect from SAT Prep with MEK Review

If you’re considering or have just signed up for test prep at MEK Review, you may be wondering what to expect. How exactly does MEK Review help students earn better results than other test prep centers, online courses, or test prep books?

Well, we’re happy to share the secret ingredients that help our students score so high!

First, some facts:

  • 160: On average, our SAT students improve 160+ points
  • 200: On average, a third of our students improve 200+ points
  • 1450: On average, our MEK students score a 1450 or higher

 
We firmly believe that these amazing results can easily become your amazing results under the guidance of our dedicated SAT Prep teachers.

Here’s how.

#1. It’s not your average prep — it’s a boot camp for the driven.

We don’t shy away from being truthful about the intensive nature of our course. In fact, we believe it’s why our courses are so successful.

As Pranav Gupta, one of our Exam Prep coordinators, says: “We like to think of ourselves as coaches, getting you ready to win the big game!”

When you join us at MEK, you can expect the following:

Students are asked to make prep a top priority.

Typical prep time before an official SAT can be anywhere from 2 to 5 months.

Our amazing students have many demands on their time: schoolwork, extracurricular activities, and family responsibilities. However, during our SAT Prep course, we ask students and parents to carve out specific SAT study and homework time in their weekly schedule and try to never miss a class.

In our years of experience, we’ve found the students who do the best are those who give SAT prep 100% dedication and effort. Ideas click earlier, good habits grow stronger, and scores improve faster!

Students are expected to meet high expectations for quizzes and homework.

At the beginning of each course, we give students a “Rules and Guidelines” sheet to place in their MEK-provided binder. This sheet details the classroom expectations for all assignments.

When students don’t meet these expectations, parents will receive notifications from MEK Review, so they can always feel in the loop.

We notify parents when:

  • Student is absent (so they can know or receive next week’s homework).
  • Student didn’t turn in homework.
  • Student’s homework score was very low.
  • Student’s quiz score was very low.

 
For certain courses, students who don’t meet expectations may have to:

  • Stay after class and re-take a quiz.
  • Stay after class and re-solve homework or other class assignment.
  • Re-solve quiz or homework assignment before the next class.
  • Come to virtual office hours.

 
The reason for these high expectations is simple: students rise up to them! By asking students to be proactive and take responsibility for their own learning, they develop a stronger mindset and sense of initiative. With this hardworking attitude, their scores improve a lot, fast!

Students are kept highly engaged by the teacher’s energy and intensity in the classroom.

Let’s face it: The SAT is an intense test. It’s a timed, complex, difficult exam with many tricks, oddities, and challenges.

For a student to truly excel, their test prep teacher must properly prepare them with a similarly intensive course.

Our teachers make sure their course is high-energy, appropriately paced to a student’s needs, and always helpful.

#2. Students get to know their test-taking weaknesses — and overcome each and every one.

If you’ve taken an online course or read a test prep book, you’re likely to start at lesson 1, and then work your way through it step by step.

While this may seem logical, in the end, it isn’t efficient and often not even effective. You may end up spending way too long on something you’re already great at, and not enough time on a SAT-related topic or skill that you struggle with.

That’s why we focus on specific areas of weaknesses, and then work towards eliminating those weaknesses!

Here’s just a few of the ways we do this:

Personalized Score Reports

Every time students take a practice SAT test at MEK Review, they receive our signature, detailed score report. This report helps the student and teacher see the exact areas of struggles for a student, whether it’s pronoun problems on the Writing section, word-in-context questions on the Reading section, or Geometry on the Math section.

We can also spot patterns in test-taking behavior for the SAT. Is a student running out of time? Struggling on a specific passage? Or losing mental endurance right at the end?

These highly-specific reports help students focus on their individual areas of weaknesses, and teachers to tailor their lessons and assignments to exactly what a student most needs to work on.

Reflection Forms & Progress Assessments

We help students monitor their own progress too.

Students in SAT advanced classes periodically fill out self-reflection forms that detail their own test-taking readiness. We want students to always be actively thinking about how to strategically improve their score.

Teachers in our SAT foundational classes take the time to fill out periodic progress assessments that are emailed to parents and students. We want parents to know their child’s areas of improvement and struggles and what we recommend as next steps.

Students can also view all of their homework and test scores through out online student portal, so they and their parents can track their progress, areas of improvement, and areas of needed improvement.

#3. Students can find a SAT prep solution, perfect for their performance range.

We love group courses! Students in group classes tend to be more motivated, engaged, and focused through a mixture of camaraderie and friendly competition with their peers.

However, we don’t believe in a one-size-fits-all approach.

That’s why we’ve organized our group courses into 5 different solutions, each designed to suit individual starting points and goals:

  • SAT Foundation
  • SAT 1400
  • SAT 1500
  • SAT 1600
  • SAT Maintenance

 
You can find out more about each of these courses here.

 

#4. Students benefit from top quality SAT-aligned materials.

Not all SAT prep materials are created equal. In fact, there are a lot of bad materials out there!

They usually:

  • Require you to learn about a topic the SAT doesn’t test.
  • Rely heavily on a format, structure, or language that doesn’t match the format, structure, or language of the SAT.

 
The SAT only tests on certain topics, so it’s important to efficiently prepare for those specific questions in the specific ways that the SAT asks them.

That’s why at MEK Review we provide literally thousands of SAT problems that test you exactly in the same manner as the SAT test.

Here are some of the materials we use:

Critical Reading Skill Sets: Designed to help students master a specific question or passage type on the SAT Reading section.

Writing Packets and Skill Sets: Filled with strategies and exercises that cover all the topics found on the SAT Writing section, along with assignments that help students master specific question types on the SAT Writing section.

Math Quizzes: Tailored to help students master specific aspects of the SAT Math section.

Vocabulary Lists and Quizzes: Helps students master vocabulary commonly found on the SAT Reading and Writing sections.

Benchmarks: Approximately half the length of the SAT test. These mini-tests let students apply their new knowledge and skills to a variety of SAT questions and passages.

Full-Length Tests: We offer many official College Board SAT tests as well as our own SAT practice tests that are exactly aligned with the official test. We also offer purposely modified SAT tests to stretch students in one specific area. For instance, a modified test may be given to our highest-performing students featuring more of the most difficult question types.

#5. Students learn test-taking skills and proven strategies.

Many students come to MEK, simply expecting to take a SAT practice test and then review with a teacher regarding which answers are right and which are wrong (the method of your average test prep center or book).

However, this type of superficial review only leads to marginal improvements. The truth is, learning whether a single answer to a SAT question is correct is not as important as understanding why the student got the wrong answer and how they can get it right the next time.

Instead, our teachers teach students specific strategies for each area of struggle, which can include any of the below:

  • They didn’t know a grammar rule or mathematical concept that the question was testing.
  • They didn’t understand the passage they read.
  • They didn’t understand the question.
  • They fell for an SAT trap answer choice.
  • They gave up on the question, because it was difficult.
  • They tried to answer the question the wrong way.
  • They ran out of time or couldn’t focus.
  • They were stuck between two answers, and ended up picking the wrong one.
  • They circled the right answer first, and then went back and changed to the wrong answer.

 
If students are struggling with SAT content, we fill in the gaps in their knowledge, so they can understand the logic behind each right answer and the flaw in each wrong answer choice.

However, we also teach them specific content-related and test-taking skills such as:

  • How to manage one’s time
  • How to pinpoint key words in a question
  • How to quickly read and comprehend the big ideas of a passage
  • How to spot common SAT traps in answer choices
  • How to create habits that will eliminate careless mistakes.
  • How to build up the mental endurance needed to score high
  • How to recognize and tackle the most difficult SAT questions

 

#6. Students learn lifelong strong habits and a strong mindset.

To recap, students who join can expect their SAT prep course to:

  • Provide a driven, “boot camp” atmosphere
  • Target individual goals and weaknesses
  • Fit them perfectly at their current level
  • Use top quality SAT-aligned materials
  • Teach proven strategies and test-taking skills

 
By learning in an intensive environment with top-quality materials and instructions, students build strong studying and test-taking habits — powerful skills for a lifetime.

Such habits help students take the knowledge they’ve learned during each session and apply it immediately to homework for review throughout the week. This way, they end up mastering these skills as quickly as possible.

Additionally, developing strong test-taking habits helps students to take the SAT test in the best and easiest way. They will no longer become frustrated, run out of time or energy or make silly mistakes due to mental fatigue, before the long 3-hour test is over.

Getting Started

Every student’s journey to 1600 always begins the same way — with an evaluation test.

By taking a full-length practice test and receiving a detailed score report, students can learn which of our four SAT Prep courses is best for them!

Check out our Events page, and keep an eye out for our next free virtual practice test offer!

You can call 855-346-1410 or contact us to set up an evaluation test right away.

We look forward to helping you!

MEK Review

MEK Review is the top learning center in North Jersey, dedicated to helping students of all ages begin an incredible success story. With our guidance, students have gained acceptances into the best schools in the country, earned top test scores, prepared for difficult admission tests, and transformed into their best selves in the classroom. To find your perfect solution, explore our programs or book your free consultation with an expert counselor!

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