Most high-school students do not enjoy studying and taking college entrance aptitude tests, such as the SAT and ACT exams. But how would these students like it if colleges made these two tests optional, or even removed it as criteria for college admissions?
The SAT and ACT exams are aptitude tests taken by high school students. The SAT (Scholastic Aptitude Test) tests students on critical thinking, math, and writing and the ACT (American College Testing) tests students on English, math, writing, reading, and science. Chris Streetman, a professor at McKendree University, writes, “Colleges often use the ACT or the SAT to determine whether to admit the student or to determine how much scholarship money they will award the student.” Colleges
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There are many preparation courses for the SATs and ACTs in the country, but they are very expensive. It is not easy for a good amount of students to get access to these prep classes. Charles Murray, a writer for The American, asks, “What about students from families with low incomes? Children of parents with poor education?” And it is not fair if the aptitude tests are set as such difficulty that taking prep courses are required, as some students won’t have the ability to take these courses, because of financial issues. A study “…has found that ending the requirement would lead to demonstrable gains in the percentages of black and Latino students, and working class or economically disadvantaged students, who are admitted” …show more content…
According to MPRNews, “Wake Forest University went test-optional three years ago, and since then we've seen first-year students from the top 10 percent of their high school class jump from 65 percent in 2008 to 83 percent this year.” And article writers, Griffin Cohen and Gene Choi write, “Starting this fall, Bard College is giving high school seniors a way to redeem poor grades and worse test scores through writing four 2,500-word research papers. If professors at the university give the papers at least a B-plus grade, students can be
Kat Cohen, the college admissions counselor regarded earlier, once stated, “Today, there are more than 900 test-optional schools — schools that place less, or no, emphasis on test scores when evaluating college applications” (Cohen par. 15). Basically what Cohen is implying is that test-optional schools are on the rise. Valerie Strauss, a reporter for The Washington Post, stated in article that, “With almost 123,000 students at 33 widely differing institutions, the differences between submitters and non-submitters are five one-hundredths of a GPA point, and six-tenths of one percent in graduation rates. By any standard, these are trivial differences” (Strauss par. 3). What Strauss is saying is that the differences in GPA between those who choose to submit their test scores with those who choose not to is very small, which can as well be applied to their graduate
... a tedious process, but the change can have immense, positive effects for the future college student. The ACT and SAT that supposedly measure a student's learning potential through multiple-choice questions should be replaced by a test of a student's desire to learn determined through the analysis of essays, recommendation letters, and school or community involvement. This change can result in a more academically motivated freshman class. Standardized testing in its current form does not accurately measure most students' learning potential. It does not allow for diversity and creates a huge hurdle for many potential academic achievers. An adjustment to a diverse, open testing format of the ACT or SAT and a stress on the student's other academic accomplishments can accurately measure the student's desire to learn, therefore measuring the student's learning potential.
A study conducted by Charles Rooney a member of the National Center for Fair and Open testing states that, "[More than 275 colleges and universities across the United States, acting on the belief that "test scores do not equal merit," do not use the SAT or the ACT to make admissions decisions about some part or all of their freshmen.]"
One of the main reasons that colleges have stopped looking at SAT scores is because there has recently been much speculation about the test being biased against certain groups, these groups being African Americans, Latinos, women, and those of a lower socioeconomic status. Also, some colleges are not placing an emphasis on the test anymore because the College Board has admitted that the SAT is designed so that only one half of those taking the test answer correctly. (Alfe, 2002)
Mr. Caperton who is the current president of the College Board who officiates the SAT states the SAT provides tools for college admissions to compare student (Caperton). The Ex-Governor of West Virginia also suggests that the test does not discriminate against minorities, he argues that colleges who make the SAT optional do it to enhance their status and not in the best interest of the students (Caperton). Alternative solutions exist. The test is going to have a major reform starting in 2016. Article from USA Today by Zoroya discusses the changes the test will have starting in the spring of 2016. According to the article by Zoroya officials from college board announced specific changes such as the test will become harder but questions will be more direct and practical, shortened duration of the test. The major change will be the change of high score from 2400 to 1600. I disagree with those who argue the SAT provides an equal playing field for all. There are studies that show the correlation between high SAT scores and high-income student. This date shows the inequality the SAT brings. Therefore all colleges should make the test as optional. I realize that the SAT gives students with bad grades the opportunity to attend good college with great SAT
"Former Bates College Dean of Admissions, William Hiss, said that intelligence is so complex, varied, and multifaceted that “no standardized testing system can be expected to capture it”(Westlund). Throughout the years standardized testing has changed its purpose and not for the better. In the late 1930s, the goal of taking standardized test was to award scholarships to "diamond in the rough" students (Westlund). Currently, the whole idea of taking the SAT or ACT is getting admitted into a college. Standardized test should not be a deciding factor of being admitted into a college.
So, using these long multiple choice exams are what college’s consider to be a reflection of a student’s grades during their first year at college. The test maker itself explains that grade point averages during high school paint a better picture than their tests ("The ACT: Biased, Inaccurate, and Misused" 1). College’s use these standardized tests as a quick measure of ability. However, a test cannot explo...
Thousands of students around the country and around the world will be preparing for the SAT and ACT tests while trying to maintain a high GPA. These tests will potentially have a significant impact on students' lives. Some will be taking these tests for the second or even third time to get that 1500 out of 1600 or that 33 out of 36, that they long desire. These flawed tests are not truly able to measure how well students will perform in college as they are supposedly used to predict. A single test that students have to wake up for at six, seven in the morning on a Saturday and travel to some random location to take a difficult test should not impact the student's chance of getting into college, let alone predict how well they will do in college.
Standardized testing has been proven to be biased towards those of ethnic and socioeconomic disadvantaged groups. Wealthy students become more prepared for standardized tests through better life experiences, such as top-quality schools and test prep tutors. Steven Syverson implies that students with high SAT scores are presumed to be “bright” and encouraged to consider the most selective colleges, with no regard to their academic performance in high school (57). Those students that were considered elite, but did not perform well their parents suggested to admission counselors that they were “not challenged” in high school (Syverson 57). According to Marchant and Paulson, race, parent education, and family income were found to account as much as 94% of the variance in scores among states (85:62). Students that belong to multiple disadvantage categories suffered greatly in the scoring criteria. The majority of students with socioeconomic disadvantages are discouraged from attending college. However, those that choose to further their education are more than likely the first ones in their family to attend college. Due to the large debate involving the admissions process using the SAT score, more colleges have adopted the SAT Optional policy because it is “consistent with their institutional mission and
Students should not have to take a test just to enter in to college because students are more than a test score, they are people too. Why are students compared with a test score that – more often than not - does not reflect their academic ability? These tests are biased because people write the questions and, therefore, they can make the question wordy and choose which ones to omit (Pollard). These test do not measure a person’s intelligence; rather, their test taking ability. As proof, the ACT science portion of the test do not pertain to science knowledge at all; rather, it ...
Since elementary school, students have been sharpening their No. 2 pencils, preparing to fill in the bubbles on their standardized tests. To younger children, these tests aren’t a very big deal. But little do they know that the tests they take in elementary school are practice for the biggest test they will take in their lives. This test is the ACT, or the SAT. These tests are a huge deal. Students’ results on these tests could change their plans for the future, and that’s a lot of pressure. So are these tests really all that they are made out to be? Are they really that important enough to stress about so much? Many people have started to say that standardized tests are hurting American schools, and that they put too much pressure on students.
Aristotle once said, “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.” Students go to school to learn the core academic values but these are not the only values they should be walking away with after they graduate. Students are forced to take standardized testing each year that claim to access their knowledge in a broad range of subjects and are used by colleges to determine admissions. Some commonly known forms of the tests are the ACT, SAT, Terra Nova and PSSA. Standardized tests are an inaccurate representation of students academic ability and therefore should not be used for college admission decisions.
There is added pressure to schools to get better scores which adds pressure to the educators and the students. The added pressure can cause health problems with the students or the educators. If health problem come from the stress of the tests it could negatively affect the student’s ability to learn (Pros and Cons, 2013). The test itself is a problem as well. The test is supposed to be unbiased based on the grade level but in most cases the test is not. As much as they try...
Making Students Battle to the Death for Admission: The Purpose of Standardized Tests INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND The issue of standardized testing, one that has been relevant in social debates for decades, has been trying to determine the best applications for these tests and its accuracy. In the discussion of the tests, multiple stakeholders give important perspectives in this issue. Of the following, students, colleges, and parents of the students are the main stakeholders whose voices need to be heard.
As many of us know, the ACT is a standardized test we all must take before being accepted into most colleges. For some people this test is difficult, for some it a breeze. Some people study hard for this test, and some people do not. It just simply depends on who you are and the type of test taker you are. In this paper, I will be arguing that everyone taking the ACT should not be graded under the same standards. First, I will explain what a standardized test is and specifically, what the ACT is. Second, I will bring up an counter argument that the ACT, in some instances, is tested the best way the way it is now because it is sometimes the best way for some people to test and offer my objection to it. Third, I will