“I’m going to fail. I can’t write an essay in 25 minutes! Why did they have to change the test this year?” These thoughts spin around in juniors and sophomores heads as the first attempt at the new SAT draws closer.

However, Jon Endicott, vice-principal, has offered a stress free way to alleviate some of the worries. On Feb. 28, Endicott will hold a workshop on the reformatted SAT.

“I think it’s important for students to know what to expect on the test,” Endicott said. “The more they know about the test, the better they may feel. Hopefully it will make them feel less stressed about the changes.”

In the new SAT, changes include a student-written essay, analogies eliminated, shorter reading passages added, new content from third year preparatory math, but quantitative comparisons have been eliminated according to www.collegeboard.com, the website used to sign up for the SAT.

“I’m going to use some of the materials provided by collegeboard.com,” Endicott said. “I’ll probably talk mostly about the essay, but it will be an overview of the whole test.”

While some students could care less about the changes, many are worried about the essay portion and how it will affect their scores.

“The essay is very scary,” Kaley Hearnsberger, ’06, said. “I like to know what’s coming and to write a complete essay in 25 minutes is a hard thing to do.”

While Endicott does not think the workshop will boost student’s scores by a lot, he believes the meeting will be very informative.

“The meeting won’t increase their scores by 400 points, but it will give them an idea of what’s coming so the fear won’t be as great,” Endicott said.

The SAT informational meeting will be held in the JJ Room on campus from 7:45 to 9 P.M. This meeting immediately follows Greg Stobbe’s New York City 6:30 P.M. meeting.

For more information on the new SAT, go online at www.collegeboard.com or contact Endicott in the high school office at 559-299-1695, ext. 5 or e-mail him at [email protected].