Cross-Text Connections

What the SAT tests here

Cross-Text Connections questions give you two short texts on the same topic. Most often the question asks how the author of Text 2 would respond to a claim or finding in Text 1.

A reliable method

1. State the claim of Text 1 in a few words. For example: raising the minimum wage reduces hiring.
2. State the position of Text 2 in a few words. For example: a study found no drop in employment.
3. Name the relationship. Text 2 might:

- disagree (its evidence contradicts Text 1),

- qualify (Text 1 is right only under some conditions),

- agree and extend (Text 2 adds support or a new reason),

- shift the focus (accepts a point but argues something else matters more).

1. Choose the answer that matches that relationship and stays close to the actual evidence in Text 2.

The relationship is usually more precise than agree or disagree

Many correct answers qualify rather than flatly reject. If Text 1 says reading on screens harms comprehension, and Text 2 finds that students understood screen texts well when they could not switch apps, Text 2 does not say screens are always fine. It suggests the problem is distraction, not the screen itself.

Use only what the texts say

The correct answer is supported by Text 2. Do not choose a response that goes beyond it, for example claiming that Text 1 is dishonest or that the topic does not matter.

Common traps

• Too strong: Text 2 qualifies a claim, but the choice says it proves the claim false in every case.
• Wrong direction: the choice describes how Text 1 would respond to Text 2.
• Off topic: the choice discusses something neither text mentions.

Quick summary

• Reduce each text to one short claim.
• Name the relationship: disagree, qualify, agree and extend, or shift the focus.
• The answer must be supported by Text 2 and no stronger than it.