Now that many students have had the opportunity to take the digital SAT, what are they saying about it? There are many benefits to the new digital SAT compared to the old pencil and paper SAT. For one thing, the new digital SAT is about 45 minutes shorter, and students definitely love spending less time testing. Reading passages on the new SAT are much shorter than those on the old test, meaning that students spend a higher proportion of their time answering questions compared to reading dense material. And unlike the old SAT, which had a “no calculator allowed” section, the new SAT not only allows a calculator for all math questions, but even provides a Desmos graphing calculator built in to the Bluebook app. This powerful tool can be a huge help for savvy students who know how to use it.
Of course, not everyone is a fan. A large number of test takers, particularly high-scoring students who moved on to the harder second module in their math section, reported that the math was a lot more difficult than what they had been used to. And some students just don’t click with the digital interface, preferring the physicality of writing in a test booklet. Regardless, it seems the digital SAT is here to stay, and smart students will make the best of its unique qualities.
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