SAT controversy and debates

SAT Controversy

The application of SAT for College Entrance Examination has been widely debated, with several supporters for its continued usage and several opponents for its discontinuance. The paper shall deal with both sides of the argument and shall reach at a conclusion.

The SAT is the country's historical, widely prevalent, and misapplied, of College Entrance examinations. The SAT-I is constituted of two phases, Verbal and Math, each marked on a 200-800 point scale. The 138 questions include specifically many choices and the ten questions relating to Mathematics need students to pen down the answers. By pattern, the test denotes more speed that many test undertakers are prevalently finding it short of answering them within the stipulated time. The SAT-II, previously attainment tests, is one hour subject-based exams, which is completely in a multiple choice pattern (excluding the SAT-II written exam, which is comprehensive of one 20 minute essay). The Educational Testing Service (ETS), hired under contract to the College Board, installs all SAT tests. A direct child of the racist anti-immigrant Army Mental Tests around the 1920s, the SAT was initially applied in 1926 but did not turn out to be a complete variety of preference examination till the phase of the World War II. (Pascarella; Terenzini, 1991).

During the phase of First World War, Robert Yerkes, a prominent member of the new IQ testing movement, persisted on the U.S. army to allow him examine all the enrollers for a quotient of intelligence. This exam, the Army Alpha, -- was the initially undertaken IQ test. One among the Yerkes' subordinate was a budding psychologist by the name of Carl Brigham, who imbibed teachings at Princeton. After the war was over, Brigham started undertaking the Army Alpha (chiefly by turning it really arduous) for application as a college admissions test. It was initially applied on an experimental basis to a set of college applicants during the time of 1926. In 1933, James Bryant Conant, on attaining the presidency of Harvard, drew a decision that he should initiate a new scholarship program for academically gifted boys who did not turn up for the Eastern boarding schools that were the consistent donors of Harvard's enrollers. He donated Henry Chauncey, a subordinate dean at Harvard, for the purpose of undertaking the discovery of a test to elucidate candidates for these particular scholarship programs. (Nicholas, 1999)

Chauncey came across Brigham, and reached back to Conant with the strong advice that he need to apply the SAT. Conant had an attraction to the test due to the fact that he assumed that it scaled sheer intelligence, irrespective of the quality of the undertaker's high school literacy. During the time of 1938, he initiated all the fellow schools of the College Board to apply the SAT as a consistent exam, but exclusively for scholarship enrollers. During the time of 1942, due to the war, the College Board admission tests that existed were terminated, so that the SAT turned out the test for all enrollers. In 1944, taken under contract to the Army and the Navy, Chauncey implemented the SAT to more or less 300,000 masses across the country in one day. During the time of 1948 the Educational Testing Service was labeled and the SAT was proceeding on its deliberation to turn out the basic college admissions gadget for millions of people. In the beginning titled the Scholastic Aptitude Test and then following that to Scholastic Assessment Test, it has now been formally labeled just SAT due to the queasiness at ETS and the College Board about elucidating just what the exam scales. SAT is not an upstart; it does not expand to anything. The test had molded over the years, but not thoroughly. (Nicholas, 1999)

Argument array

For 75 years SAT has been a valuable part of the process for admissions. According to the supporters of SAT, this examination not only increases the chances of admission for all students but may also help the individual student. The main objective of SAT is to assess the readiness of a student to attend college. The effectiveness of the test can also be judged from the correlation of the grades in SAT with the grades in college. Individually the SAT scores give the predictions for the students not only about their college grades but also about their high school grades. The scores in this examination can also be used in conjunction with the GPA scores achieved by the students and this normally gives more accurate results. This ability to give a good prediction helps the examination to determine the chances of success that a student has at a fixed college. At the same time, since it provides accurate predictions it will also predict the chances of failure that a student will have, and this is almost mathematical in its accuracy. When the student fails, but could have succeeded at some other colleges, then the non-prediction is a disservice done to him. According to the supporters of SAT, if the SAT examinations are not taken the result will be seen in the failure of more students, especially the minority students. (Hiss, 1990)

The test is formulated to be free of high school curriculum (bearing least semblance to the SAT's major rival, the ACT). It now constitutes of analogies, sentence completion, reading comprehension, standard mathematics and quantitative comparison items. The SAT-I is not comprehensive of advanced mathematics topics or in no way does it try to ascertain enhanced level of thinking or reasoning skills. Though a mark in the verbal abilities is given, test undertakers do not pen down a single word. Ever since its origination in 1926, the SAT Reasoning Test has served as a significant instrument for colleges to draw out objective elucidations between students from a disarray of high schools stretched all through the country. As a student might have a GPA higher ordinance to that of his counterparts, his SAT marks enables admission boards to pinpoint whether his good marks are arising out of his own deliberate effort or the redundantly donating marking policies of tutors who give up the honesty of their marks on the attire of social inculcation. (Schneider and Dorans, 1999)

There have been several criticisms raised against the use of SAT. SAT is proclaimed as foreseeing fresher year marks in college to a meager extent. And of course it carries out. It scales it in a meager chunk. Almost every thing one carries out, comprehensive of family asset, will scale fresher year marks in a meager amount. But the exact fact is that it does not scale intellect, according to critics. Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scales particular credentials, but may not mirror everyday intelligence quotient. U.S. presidential enrollers Al Gore and George Bush did not get marks specifically well on the verbal phase of the SAT. Gore was in reception of 625 and Bush a 566. In spite of these meager scores, majority of the masses would as a case comply with the fact that Gore and Bush are intelligent. It has been criticized that general intelligence tests do not scale credentials such as creativity and adaptability. To be determinant of success through SAT, the student's SAT mark is etched on a table, along with both the cases as whether or not the student has had a graduation. (Cavanagh, 2003)

Via these means, data can be gathered for both results, and, when the ratio of students mark at a specific level is graphed or histogrammed, it will constitute two dissipations, which can be clearly elucidated by two bell curves. One curve is constituted for students who did not clear graduation, and makes a record of their marks on the x-axis, with the recurrence of their scores at variant levels on the y-axis, while a semblance of the curve can portray those who clear graduation. In virtual surroundings, there is a semblance of overlapping of the curves. Some students with associatively increasing SATs may not have cleared graduation, while some with associatively meager SATs may as a matter of fact clear their graduation. Critics argue that due to the fact that we are attempting to apply SAT marks as the foreseeing aspect of success in clearing graduation at college we require to prefer some area that will give rise to majority of students admitting that they have indeed graduated taking into assumption that an education may be wasted on those particular people who do not bear the least semblance of getting a graduation. (Pascarella & Terenzini, 1991).

Again further it has been criticized that SAT has created possibilities of non-graduating students who will be inappropriately admitted and the figure of capable graduating students who will be inappropriately turned down admission. Anyhow, if high school GPA is also applied, the mixture of SAT and GPA can be put as many variant rational and mathematical definitive rules, of which a single one will statistically mitigate the probabilities of perpetrating admission errors, according to critics. This is an instance of the means in which decisive rules are often patterned for computerizing the decisions. One meticulous literacy analysis elucidated two admission plans, one applying just the high school record and the other applying high school record and SAT-I marks. A huge number exceeding 90% of the admissions decisions were the very same under both plans. Anyhow, for the 10% of the enroller pool in which the two plans gave rise to variant decisions, the SAT-based plan gave rise to a higher chunk of dismissals of otherwise academically deemed minority and low-asset enrollers. Critics argue that most 4-year colleges are open to more than 75% of their applicants and have constrained or no real requisite for the SAT as an admissions instrument. Even the handful of 130 or categorized schools that turn down more than half their enrollers could curtail the SAT without giving it an academic value. (Cavanagh, 2003)

The SAT-I is authenticated for a lone purpose- foreseeing first year college grades. According to critics, it does not carry out even this in a good fashion, according to critical opinion. It has been argued that after long duration of years in portraying the SAT as a common measure, the test creators have now faltered, making a claim that it is just a false notion that the test will give provision to a single, non-equivalent measure for grading on excellence. The SAT has always been disposed towards students who can eke out a coaching over those who are not possible to carry our, students from among affluent schools as against those from distraught urban school systems, and men against women. The test creators have denied that they were the ones who put forth claims that performance on the SAT cannot be enhanced through tuition. (Dorans; Lyu; Pommerich and Houston, 1997) chunk of released analyses make a conclusion that better tuition courses can boost a student's scores by 100 points or even more. These courses, which can exceed a rate of $800, further distort scores in disposition to higher asset test undertakers. It has been criticized that individual coaching for SAT can harm a student through distraction at critical times when they would otherwise have built up their confidence and personal esteem for doing well in examinations through analytical thinking, effective writing and concentrating on their analytical skills. (Hiss, September, 1990) Due to the fact that college admission officers do not have the knowledge of who has been imbibed the coaching and who has not undertaken the course, they cannot make a fair comparison of two applicant's marks. Test creators give a nod to the fact that high school grade point average (GPA) or class rank are the superior foreseers of the first year marks, in spite of the vast difference among high schools and courses.

The SAT-I foresees other results, such as graduation proportions, even more inadequately. Anyhow, analyses portray that the separate colleges' own exams are highly precision instruments for taking students. Having a main concern about difficulties with these tests, approximately 400 4-year colleges and Universities do not apply the SAT to carry out admissions decisions about a huge chunk of their applicants. Ever since 1998, enrollers to open universities in Texas did not have the requirement to give SAT or ACT marks if they make a finish in the top 10% of their high school classes. That policy evolution followed after state analyzers made a conclusion that "the use of standardized tests inappropriately constrains admissions" and that "excluding the extremities, SAT/ACT scores do not proportionately foresee grades in core fresher courses or the chance of college graduation." (The SAT: Questions and Answers)

Further the opponents of SAT are of the view that women have achieved innumerous assets in higher education in the phase that lasted for the last twenty years. The major chunk of every undertaker in higher education turns out to be a woman. (Danowitz Sagaria, 1988) and women are in higher numbers resorting to pursuance of non-orthodox degrees, giving open ways to attainment of a vast array of jobs. In spite of these assets, lot of proof is existential such as disparaging comments, variant opportunities, and sexual misconduct. The allusion to gender partiality for the sake of women's educational enhancement is vast as women student's understanding of university gender partiality is alluded in lesser self-assessments of their academic brilliance, a mitigation in academic and job dreams from fresher to older ones (Ossana, Helms, & Leonard, 1992).

Opponents of SAT argue that so as to enable tutors, counselors, and student matter staff to enhance and imbibe women-friendly surroundings which boost women's educational success, it is important to pinpoint and scale those variants particularly associated to women's academic attainment. Admission offices have often depended on a particular standard of test, such as the SAT, to foresee women's academic achievement in spite of vast proof that orthodox resorts are not as plausible for men as when compared to men (Gamache & Novick, 1985). As women attain higher marks than men in college, the SAT does not give credit to the grades achieved by women (Rosser, 1989). Critics argue that because the experiences of women students are often hugely different from their male associates, it can be anticipated that foreseers of their academic brilliance will differ from that of the men. face-to-face with many hurdles in their literacy enhancement, female students must recurrently be in possession of extra credentials to come out with flying colors. For instance, several writers have portrayed nonacademic variants, such as self-prestige (Stericker & Johnson, 1977), susceptible to role models and leader qualities associated to women's literacy attainment

Wherein the SAT and yet different standardized tests are inclined to scale what Sternberg (1985, 1986) makes reference as a constitutional intelligence, the capability to understand and communicate information in a gradual and taxonomic style in an elucidated and non-variant context. Research discoveries give a suggestion that separate entities who have had partiality treatment are inclined to exhibit their capabilities via empirical and to the contextual intelligence along with Sternberg's second and third variants of intelligence. Empirical intelligence is comprehensive of the ability to understand and communicate in evolving contexts, whereas to the context intellect pinpoints to the capability to mold for an adaptive surroundings.

Again it has been criticized that students ranging from African-American, Latino, new Asian immigrants and lot of other minority test undertakers get marks particularly lesser than white students. SAT hoists an undue load on students for whom English is not the primary language. Research makes suggestion that the SAT-I does not foresee Hispanic students first year college marks appropriately as it carries out with the white students' marks. One particular study discovered that even for two language students whose superior language was English the SAT-I did not accurately foresee college performance. Inflexible application of SATs for admissions will give rise to fresher classes with a handful of minorities with no particular asset in academic value. According to critics, the SAT is very influential in overthrowing academically assuring minority (and low asset) students who enroll with a strong mettle of academic records but comparatively less SAT marks. Colleges that have turned the SAT-I a choice have made a report that their applicant gatherings are more different and that there has not been any fall in academic value. There are several studies which are existential which demonstrate that female and minority students who are knowledgeable of racial and gender biases get marks lesser on tests such as the SAT hold as the chief aim the scaling of academic ability. (The SAT: Questions and Answers)

Analysis:

The Standardized Admission Test (SAT) has been increasingly coming under fire during the last few years. Critics accuse SAT of subjectivity, unfairness and racial bias. A professor of psychology at Yale University, Robert J. Sternberg has started on a project to develop a better testing system than SAT. He has completed the first phase of this college admissions test that is expected to give better accuracy than SAT. This is expected to be even better for the lowly represented minorities. The alternative examination of Sternberg is expected to be an additional test rather than a replacement for SAT.

The new test uses several choice-based questions and those questions which are related to performance. The participants have to work out their own answers. They have also to compose two different stories which test their originality, evocativeness, complexity and descriptive narration skills. The student's encounters in day-to-day life are tested in other sections where they have to suggest the best possible solutions. Some critics feel that this may help some people to beat the system for assessing their creative and practical abilities. The inventor does not agree as he feels that if stale answers are given like those suggested by test preparation courses, they will end up getting low grades as the students are being tested on innovation and novelty of ideas. (Cavanagh, 2003)

Dr. Richard Atkinson, President of the University of California and a leading figure in the field of Education in the country is one of the ardent critics of SAT. For the last few months he has been actively campaigning for stopping the use of SAT for college admissions. Atkinson believes that though standardized tests are important methods to check academic progress, we should in no way overestimate its value beyond its utility and therefore SAT should be banned. Atkinson also points out that the differences in the average test score for minorities are ample proof for the cultural bias in the tests. However in reality Atkinson's arguments do not hold any water. The effectiveness of SAT to predict well how well a student will perform in college was statistically validated many times. This is no doubt the most important parameter that the admission boards should employ while considering an application for admission. (Bissell, 2001)

It would be a foolhardy act to give admissions to students with a combined score of 800 in Harvard, which are a selective University and where the intellectual demands are high. In all probability these students will drop out after a few weeks being not able to meet the intellectual demands. The SAT is an objective test since it asks the same questions to all the candidates and uses exactly the same standards to evaluate all papers. The SAT test consists of questions related to English and mathematical reasoning, skills that are expected from every college education aspirants. The scores will of course determine the ability of certain students to perform better. This is exactly what is expected of SAT or any other aptitude-measuring test. The SAT as alleged by some quarters is not over utilized in the admission process. It would no doubt be foolish to depend only on one test alone to determine the quality of the students for admission. All the colleges in the United States have much more requirements for admission other than the scores of the SAT. (Bissell, 2001)

Many other yardsticks such as essays, grade point average and extracurricular activities are at the disposal of the admission boards. And lastly, the SAT does not discriminate minorities. The high performance of Asians - who though are well off still constitutes a minority - in the SAT is proof of this. The average score of the Asians is higher than the score of the majority white. However it is a fact that the African and Native Americans generally do score less than other ethnic groups. The most important fact is that based on the SAT scores, college performance can be predicted with the same accuracy for all ethnicities. Any student with a score of 1250 or more, irrespective of being a black, white or Asian will in all probability is able to graduate from college. (Bissell, 2001)

In spite of all the criticism emanating from Atkinson and his co-detractors of SAT, it is the most objective and racially unbiased tests available to colleges today. The test does not discriminate anyone on the basis of his or her skin color or on the quality of the high schools they attended. Any individual who aims at academic brilliance will be able to score well in SAT irrespective of the fact whether he is from a decrepit school in the inner city of from an exclusive private school. It is because of this that SAT was able to provide more opportunities for disadvantaged students throwing to wind the allegations of it being racially and economically biased. In fact a test such as SAT II, which is advocated by Atkinson to replace SAT, is more biased towards the economically better off. The fact is that its founders introduced SAT at a time when admissions to the elite colleges of America were solely based on money and family connections. (Bissell, 2001)

No doubt the test has introduced a method that tests the prospective college students on the basis of their probability of success in college instead of their financial capability or ancestry. Dr. Atkinson and similar critics of the SAT suggests a more 'holistic' testing method, which will have to be more subjective and less individualistic in place of SAT. In this scenario, more importance will be given to the student's capacity to write essays that will catch the admission officer's attention, subject's tests that evaluates the student's high school rather than his mind and to the high grades earned which many schools dole out very easily. In this case it will become extremely difficult for colleges to find students that can successfully complete the college. Moreover meritorious students will be overlooked in favor of those who can write a colorful essay or with a favored skin color. An interesting experiment can be done keeping in view the arguments advanced by Atkinson and other critics of SAT. Lock them up in a room with the SAT test and the required tools and wait for the results of their performance. Sure the results will be extremely disappointing since it is a reasoning test. (Bissell, 2001)