Kaplan Emergency Prep: SAT/ACT: Information from Answers.com

Release Date: 2001 03
Genre: Educational
Style: Test Preparation

Game Description

As the title implies, the Kaplan Emergency Prep: SAT/ACT is designed to offer a crash course in the intricacies of performing well on the standardized tests most colleges use when considering new applicants. The software offers hints for making educated guesses and contains two full mock tests to familiarize students with the format they'll be facing.

The program's multifaceted approach offers practice in what to look for on the tests as well as the secrets to success, shortcuts, and advice from those experienced in designing and taking the tests. Lesson modules include Secrets of the SAT, Critical Reading, Sentence Completions, Analogies, Regular Math, Quantitative Comparisons and Grid-Ins. There are ten timed games (adjustable to slow, medium, and fast) to help practice knowledge, accuracy, and speed. These games are made up of 4x4 grids where you match two answers of related information.

Kaplan Emergency Prep: SAT/ACT also provides practice for "Grid-Ins," a more recent addition to the SATs. Also known as bubble grids, Grid-Ins are the only questions on the test that don't offer multiple-choice answers. Other features include an analysis program for tracking your performance; explanations on symbols, trick questions, traps and back-solving concepts; and an admissions calendar module that offers score comparison methods, how schools use the scores, and testing dates.

~ Michael L. House, All Game Guide

Roots & Influences

Kaplan, Inc., a subsidiary of The Washington Post Company, provides educational and career services for individuals, schools and businesses. They offer preparation for 30 standardized tests for high schools, college and graduate students.

~ Michael L. House, All Game Guide

Review: Overall

For a program with the word "emergency" in the title, Kaplan Emergency Prep: SAT/ACT helps to reduce the fear and anxiety typically associated with cramming for standardized tests. Every aspect of the game is designed to help students become better test-takers.

The Scholastic Aptitude Test ( SAT) and the ACT Assessment ( ACT) come on separate CDs and have some overlapping features. The general format of the lessons and the game screen are the same for both. "The Secrets Of..." segment and Brainwashing Quiz introductions are also nearly verbatim, while other elements of the CDs are quite test-specific. The ACT contains more types of questions than the SAT, as reflected in the lessons.

The tongue-in-cheek nature of the program helps to take the urgency out of the "emergency." Kaplan knows its audience, teenagers, and sarcastic humor is the norm. Animated high school juniors and seniors populate "The Secrets Of..." lesson and Brainwashing Quiz, each with their own pre-determined beliefs about the SAT. A student-sized Venus Flytrap eats the poor cartoon who got tricked by test traps. Screens with very small text give disclaimers in a tone of mock seriousness. Some of the jokes are overly corny but most hit the target and are well written and truly humorous.

Features designed to increase rather than reduce anxiety are built into the practice SAT and ACT tests to help students prepare for realistic test-taking situations, which aren't always quiet. Sounds include a dog barking, car braking, and student snoring.

Games are designed to give students practice with distractions as well. The game format is a schizophrenic memory board in which pairs of related answers flash in and out of the screen, with some having no matches at all. Navigating this high-pressure activity will help students navigate in a high-pressure testing situation.

Lessons contain verbal, visual, and auditory reinforcement, which helps those who aren't "good with tests" to learn new information. Even the type of practice questions supplied is varied in every lesson. Some are "graded" with cheering for a right answer and a glass-shattering sound for a wrong one. However, other practice questions aren't evaluated. Frequently, the lessons allow practice before an example or strategy is given, a method that helps build confidence in making educated guesses and sharpens the eyes to look for patterns, since the helpful hints in the program won't be available during the test.

The proverbial wisdom is that Kaplan has cornered the market on test preparation and, with this program, it's easy to see why. Every game, sound, and guided practice is planned to help students perform better on the SAT and ACT. In this regard, Kaplan Emergency Prep: SAT/ACT scores several points above a traditional study workbook.