Not trying to be nitpicky right back at you but...

They have 30 minutes to write the SAT essay and it is response to an assigned quote. They don't have time to contemplate their heart and there isn't time to really write a nuanced essay where they take a shades of gray position and try to say something meaningful. This can of course be really tough for a gifted student who likes to consider all the shades of gray and say something meaningful and honest!

We found the best way to cope with this this was to be direct about the terms of the game. The rules are: quickly read the quote, choose a side and plug in prepared examples. There is not time to consider if you believe the ends justify the means or if honest is the best policy. Agree or disagree it doesn't matter just choose something and write. Rather than just declaring this whole exercise pointless because it doesn't really teach anything about writing, we decided instead to treat it as an exercise in understanding how to identify opposing arguments and how to make a fast decision and yes, how to practice writing about topics you don't care about and don't understand!