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Is it silly to use Khan Academy's SAT prep to study for the ACT?


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I guess the topic title says it all.  My daughter thinks she wants to go ACT instead of SAT, but she did take the PSAT (as well as ACT as a 10th grader just for "fun"/baseline) and has linked her Khan Academy account to her results, and she likes the way it helps her study.  Anyone have any thoughts on how much this would help prep for the ACT?  Or, is there something else out there like Khan Academy's prep program for ACT, whether free or at a cost?

 

Clearly, it would NOT be very helpful for the Science section, of course, but how about the other sections?

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While the questions are a bit different between the ACT and SAT exams, doing some studying through Khan Academy should still be helpful.  My daughter took both exams and did use Khan Academy a bit.  Your daughter will still want to study using an ACT specific study guide - Barron's is good.

 

I would suggest that your daughter reconsider taking the SAT.  It doesn't hurt to give it a try, and she may be surprised by her scores. If she is not happy with her score, she needn't report it. Keep in mind that speed is a bigger factor when taking the ACT than when taking the SAT. If she can work quickly, that will give her an advantage, score-wise on the ACT.  If not, it can really hurt.

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My dd only used Khan. She loved it because it turned out to be a lot harder than the actual exam so she felt completely relaxed taking the exam. Due to a combination of getting a great math teacher for the past two years and using Khan, she managed to raise her math score 180 points.

 

I know a lot of people who pay big bucks for a study coach, but I am so glad we didn't.

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I think the tests are too different.  For example the ACT has very specific grammar/punctuation questions.  The SAT has nothing like that.  There are many subjects covered on the ACT that are not covered at all on the SAT.  Maybe the math review of the SAT would be ok.  Math is math right?  And possibly the reading comprehension stuff would be similar enough.

 

 

 

 

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  Or, is there something else out there like Khan Academy's prep program for ACT, whether free or at a cost?

 

ACT has an online prep program that looks similar to Khan but for a fee. I haven't used it so I don't know exactly what it's like:

 

http://www.act.org/content/act/en/products-and-services/the-act/test-preparation/act-online-prep.html

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I'm sorry it has taken me so long to get back here and say thanks for all the advice!  It's good to know that the test preps really should be pretty different.  I think in the end she is going to take both like someone suggested above and then hone her practice based on which she decides.  For now she's doing Khan, and it certainly won't hurt anything.  Thanks again, everyone!

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I believe with the tie in between Khan Academy and the College Board, Khan Academy is *the* place to study for the SAT and probably the PSAT also. That is what I suggested to my DD.    I am assuming that Khan Academy doesn't have similar material for the ACT. Am I assuming correctly?  (Usually, when I assume, I am wrong).  If not available on Khan Academy, then I too am interested in the responses to this thread, about where to study and prepare for the ACT. 

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My dd only used Khan. She loved it because it turned out to be a lot harder than the actual exam so she felt completely relaxed taking the exam. Due to a combination of getting a great math teacher for the past two years and using Khan, she managed to raise her math score 180 points.

 

I know a lot of people who pay big bucks for a study coach, but I am so glad we didn't.

 

@SanDiegoMom in VA   a question:  Are you saying she found the ACT easy, after studying on Khan Academy? Or, was that on the SAT?  Whichever it was, congratulations to your DD for being "over prepared", which is much better than being "under prepared".

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