Standardized tests come around several times each year. For example, the SAT is offered seven times per year. However, it doesn’t matter how many times a student takes one particular test, if they aren’t informed about how and when to start studying, they will not reach their full potential. That is why it’s so important for students to learn and recognize what study methods work best for them.

Here at Westhampton Beach High School, students are offered many great opportunities to enhance their test taking abilities. Some of these opportunities are offered as electives that students have the option to take. Mrs. Wiles, an English teacher at Westhampton Beach High School currently teaches a class that offers great practice and resources for certain standardized tests, she said “right here in WHBHS we have Junior Seminar, which is like a test prep boot camp.” But she warns students, “don’t enroll in the class if you are not serious.” Junior Seminar is an excellent class incoming juniors should seriously consider, but like Mrs. Wiles said, don’t enroll if you aren’t serious, because there are a limited amount of students who can enroll in Junior Seminar per semester, due to it’s success in helping students prepare for tests like the ACT, everyone wants a seat in her class. A big reason why Junior Seminar is so successful is because students complete a number of practice tests, and participate in rigorous study activities throughout the semester. If you are currently enrolled Junior Seminar or plan to take it in the future, remember to make the most of the resources it offers, and take all of its many lessons seriously because everything you learn can help you succeed in the future.

If you are a student who prefers to study on your own time or use your own methods, there are still so many ways you can use school resources to practice for any of the standardized tests in your life. Mrs. Wiles also suggests that students might want to start their study process online, she said, “We’re so lucky that our school subscribes to Method Test Prep. All anyone needs to do to get a great head start on either test is to log into Castle Learning and click on either the SAT tab or the ACT tab. There are so many resources there.” Daniela Robles, a junior here at Westhampton Beach High School, finds that the best way for her to study is by doing practice tests online, she said, “I do practice tests in a quiet place, or else I can’t concentrate.” It’s important for students to work in en environment that they know will allow them to concentrate best. All students have their own ways to study that work best for them, it is important however, to try new methods once in a while, just to make sure you can say you’ve tried it all. For some the SAT/ACT may be a major stressor, but one way to alleviate this fear is to familiarize yourself with the test. Robles has some of her own methods that may help to relieve some of the pre-test stress for other students too, she said, “I have to pretend I’m taking the real test,” putting yourself in a quiet, test-like environment and focusing your attention on one practice test at a time, may really help to familiarize you with the materials on the test and you will be able to measure how long you need for each question or each section of the test. By doing this, you will realize what you need to improve on and what you have mastered and can put aside for a while.

For students like Daniela, who do their best work in a quiet place or by themselves, it may seem hard to find a space at home or during school to get in important study time, luckily for students like these, there are so many places either in school or outside of school to study for any of these standardized tests. The school library is open during most lunch periods and is available to students who want to be in a quiet atmosphere to study for these tests. The school library is also open after school during the extra help periods, and students are welcome to go in there to study quietly by themselves or with a friend. The Westhampton Free Library is also open every day of the week and is in walking distance of the school.

There is no doubt that standardized tests can be extremely stressful and may seem unnecessary at times, but it is so important to study hard and prepare yourself for these tests. No matter how much we wish they would just go away, every year we find ourselves facing the inevitable. So while many students still can, they should take every opportunity offered to them to prepare and study for any of these tests, whether is be the SAT, PSAT or the ACT, how students do on them has the ability to affect them in the future when they start applying to colleges.