I began with just a brief list of 10 satirical tips that I built off of an actual forum on SAT preparation. For my revision process I cut down the list by half, and evaluated the serious issues that come with taking the SAT and the differences between testing here and in other countries. By having an emotional connection to the topic I was able to really voice my concern while at the same time putting my words in a format that’s going to translate well to teenagers. I had some peers in the other english classes suggest that I get rid of some of my “tips” and go more in-depth on the really important ones, which I agreed with. Also, Kate’s suggestion of separating standardized testing in general and the SAT specifically helped the focus of my paper during the revision process.
As for questions, I have these: Does my structure make sense in terms of the switches between topics? Does it make sense to bring different issues (international testing, health concerns, etc) into the same (un)essay? Was my satirical approach that I used in the beginning too heavy to be taken seriously? Was the transition from satire to seriousness effective enough/recognizable?
I’m actually very proud of this. I was able to connect very well to my writing and I feel that I learned a lot about my topic and felt as though I was really writing about something that’s important to students in America. I loved being able to write with a different approach (the Buzzfeed article style) , because it enabled me to be more creative and it also made it easier for me to separate my ideas and focus on each part individually. I liked the information I got from my research and think it applied to my topic.
The only thing I’m unsure of is the grey area between standardized testing in general and specifically the SAT. I tried to connect international standardized testing to the SAT in America but found it sort of difficult because other countries don’t necessarily have an equivalent version of the test.
-Emily Christen