Now available following a worldwide release, author and teacher Bill Melega is sharing his unique and effective storytelling instructional method to increase student engagement and prepare them for success on the SAT World History Subject TestMelega has written and published the newest edition of the SAT World History Subject Test Review for Barron’s Educational Publishing (New York). It is available at all major booksellers and online vendors, including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Books-a-Million.
Melega, who has spent his 20-year teaching career in the North Carolina Public Schools, was asked in July 2013 to submit a book proposal to Barron’s by editor Kristen Girardi, who heard Melega speak about the importance of Higher Order Thinking at the 2011 National Advanced Placement (AP) World History Conference in San Francisco.
“It was a great achievement to be selected as the sole author for the book project,” says Melega. “It is even more exciting now that I have completed the book and can share my love and knowledge of history to help students around the globe excel on the SAT World History Subject Test.
The SAT Test, administered by The College Board, is one of two primary assessments used by colleges and universities to make decisions about admissions and possible scholarships. The SAT Subject Tests, offered at the same time as the SAT, are available for any student who excels in a specific subject and wishes to boost their overall SAT score in that subject.
“For students who excel in the Humanities – history, English, literature, languages, communications – this is a test they could take to show their expertise in world history,” explains Melega. “The test incorporates factual recall questions with queries and essays that require the ability to synthesize data using critical thinking and persuasive arguments. I wrote the review book so students could achieve that higher level of thinking.”
The Barron’s World History Subject Review book is written using an easy-to-understand storytelling style, incorporating “Fun Facts” and “Dinner Table Talk” topics into the factual information. It covers world history from the prehistory era through modern day, and includes a diagnostic test, three full practice tests, and Quick Quizzes every 2-3 chapters.
Another primary focus of the book is Global Connections. “History didn’t happen in a vacuum,” says Melega. “Everything that happens around the world reverberates somehow in other cultures.”
Melega has also collaborated internationally to write educational materials on World War I for the American Battlefields Monument Commission (Meuse-Argonne, France). Entitled Bringing the Great War Home: Volume IV, it is presented free as an iBook. Melega also partnered with Bloomsbury Publishing (London) to write inquiry-based lessons on Winston Churchill, which are available free online via the Churchill Archives for Schools.
Melega’s teaching honors include:
- Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) National Educator of the Year, Washington D.C.
- Korean Studies Workshop for American Educators Teacher of the Year, Seoul, Korea
- VFW State Teacher of the Year, North Carolina
- OAKS Foundation World History Education Grant Recipient, Zurich, Switzerland
- Chapel Hill Historical Society/ Public School Foundation History Education Grant Recipient
- Chapel Hill High School Teacher of the Year
