Why Good SAT® Prep Advice Isn't Enough
Secret #2 to taking the guesswork out of SAT® Reading
Welcome back to my 4-part series on the secrets that separate struggling SAT® Reading students from elite scorers.
On Saturday, I shared Secret #1 about the fundamental disconnect between how students are trained in school and what the SAT® Reading section actually rewards.
Today, I want to share Secret #2, which explains why even students who understand they need a different approach often still can't break through their score barriers.
Unfortunately, even with the right paradigm, many students still struggle to increase their score. To understand how this can be, let’s take a look at some common test prep advice:
”The answer is always in the passage.”
“Read the passage carefully, then try to predict the correct answer and look for that in the answer choices."
“Eliminate answer choices that aren’t supported by the text.”
Depending on the situation, all of those could be perfectly sound advice. So what’s the problem?
These tips are like telling someone to "swing smoothly" to improve their golf game. It's not wrong, but it's useless without knowing the specific mechanics of HOW to do it.
Which brings me to Secret #2:
Many students fail to increase their SAT® Reading score not because they don't know WHAT to do, but because they don't know HOW to do it.
Let me show you what I mean with a real example:
Generic Advice: "Eliminate answers that aren’t supported by the passage."
What this actually requires:
Understanding the most common factors that make a plausible-sounding answer incorrect
Familiarizing yourself with a straightforward framework for identifying these subtle traps
Habituating the application of that framework until it becomes second-nature
Learning to execute this systematically under the stress and time pressure of test day
See the difference?
When it comes to SAT Reading, many prep resources are long on general advice and short on mechanics. They tell students to "analyze carefully" without showing them the step-by-step process that analysis requires in a high-pressure, timed environment.
The Pressure Problem
Here's what I've observed: students can often get questions right when they have unlimited time and no pressure. But add a ticking clock and the stress of test day, and everything falls apart.
Why? Because they're trying to figure out their approach to each question from scratch, rather than following a systematic process they've practiced until it becomes automatic.
As David, one of my former students who scored in the 97th percentile, put it:
“Dave is the perfect tutor if you want someone who will walk you through the exact steps you need to tackle all the questions on SAT Verbal. He has created a method of approaching this part of the SAT that improved my score tremendously."
The Bridge to Systematic Execution
This execution gap is exactly why I developed specific protocols within my Cross-Examiner's Toolbox™, a key element of my SAT® Reading & Writing Mastery course. Instead of general advice, students learn:
5 straightforward tools that help them quickly find the flaws in answer choices, such as the Highlighter Test™, The Clip Art Test™, and the Saturation Slider Test™
The exact sequence of steps to follow for each question type
How to spot the hidden keys that dramatically decrease the difficulty of the most challenging questions
100+ practice questions with detailed walk-throughs demonstrating exactly how the tools are applied
The difference is like having a GPS versus wandering around with a compass. One just provides you with a general sense of direction. The other tells you exactly when and where to turn.
On Thursday, I'll share Secret #3: the biggest mistake families make when choosing SAT prep—and why the "expert vs. cheap" dilemma is a false choice.
Until then, keep prepping smarter!
Dave Walker
Founder, Walker Prep
P.S. If your child has ever said "I keep getting it down to the correct answer and another possibility, but I keep picking the wrong one,” that's the execution gap in action. The systematic approach of my Cross-Examiner’s Toolbox™ method eliminates that uncertainty by making the reasoning process crystal clear.