When I came into Dr. Li's for the first time I remember not having any hope for better SAT scores. I had already taken one course online and done 2-3 textbooks, and on top of that, taken every practice test available online. I was getting the same scores everytime-- high 1400s. And while that's a perfectly acceptable score, and for some even a great one, the academic environment at my school was a lot more competitive.

 

To stand out at Poolesville High School, a whole school magnet, one would need a score in the mid or high 1500s. I had all but given up on the possibility. My dad wanted to try one more thing-- M&E. We came in with totally different expectations. I was really only going because my dad had already paid. But after the first two classes, I already knew something was different. Raising my score was especially hard for me because I had already mastered most of the subjects, and the remaining few were ones I would continually struggle with.

 

I had tried almost everything to understand how to tackle them, but had no success. After just the first few classes, I had already learned to solve a multitude of math problems I took so long to try and figure out before. And when I took practice tests and recognized problems similar to these, I was able to solve each one accurately. Dr. Li was able to explain each of these nuanced, SAT-specific questions clearly and in a way which I could apply the technique to multiple questions of the same sort. This is a big part of what pushed my score over the edge of 1500. 

 

The other part, maybe even the most important peice of the puzzle, was the vast improvement in my reading score. There was a change in mental attitude in regards to how I looked at the reading/writing section which M&E academy patiently helped me foster. I had to shift from an analaysis mindset, which had been drilled into me since 6th grade at school, to a standardized test taking mindset. This was especially hard. Dr. Thomson drilled down on the most important techniques used to take the reading section. And just through his repeated emphasis, I was able to raise my reading score from 720 to 780. Everything was so laid out for me, organized, easy to follow. The homework helped me practice the skills I was slowly learning and eventually it was second nature. Gaining a deep understanding of a standardized test like the SAT is a complex task, and being able to teach a test to general and continually changing is even harder. M&E academy has this understand and this ability to truly aid its students in getting to this same level. 

 

When I finally got my score, I was on the way home from school and I genuinely screamed. It was one of the happiest moments of my whole year, especially with it being my junior year. That day, even before I got home, my dad and I visited Dr. Li to express our sincerest thanks. Without his and Dr. Thomson’s guidance I would not have been able to achieve the 1550 I am proud to put on my college applications today.