Standardized tests for college admissions have come under intense scrutiny, especially during the coronavirus pandemic. But some administrators and testing experts argue that the backlash against tests like the SAT and ACT is unfair and based on little evidence, according to the New York Times.
”[A] “A growing number of experts and university administrators are wondering whether this switch was a mistake,” wrote New York Times reporter David Leonhart in a feature article on the trend away from testing requirements at U.S. universities. I wrote it in
“Research has shown that standardized test scores contain real information and can help predict college performance, likelihood of graduation, and post-college success.” Leonhardt writes in the special feature: From Sunday. “Due to recent grade inflation, test scores are more reliable than high school grades.''
Administrators at some of America's top universities agree that tests like the SAT and ACT are valuable predictors of academic success. Brown University President Christina Paxson: “Standardized test scores are a much better predictor of academic success than high school grades'' wrote in a letter Published in June.
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Standardized tests for college admissions have come under intense scrutiny, especially in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. But some administrators and testing experts argue that the backlash against tests like the SAT and ACT is unfair and based on little evidence, according to the New York Times. (Getty Images/AP Photo)
MIT Dean of Admissions Stuart Schmil told the Times that grades don't tell the whole story about a student. “Getting straight A's is not enough information to know whether a student will pass or not,” Schmil said.
Schmil also argued that MIT, one of the few elite institutions in the United States that maintained testing requirements, actually increased diversity on campus. “After we reinstated the testing requirement, we admitted the most diverse class in our history,” Schmil told the Times. “It was helpful because I had the test scores.”
“Test scores have much more predictive power than is generally understood in popular discourse,” said John Friedman, a professor of economics at Brown University.Friedman was one of them. study author About the importance of testing for selective universities in the US
Liberals have led protests against standardized tests, arguing that they discriminate against black and Hispanic students, who tend to score lower than white and Asian students.
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“Without test scores, the people who suffer the most are the high-achieving students at relatively unknown high schools, which are less likely to send their children to Ivy League schools,” said Harvard economist David Deming. There are almost no.” “The SAT is their lifeline.” (St. Petersburg)
However, Leonhardt pushed back against the claim that “racial and economic disparities in SAT and ACT scores” prove “the test is biased.”
“Ultimately, there are disparities in most measures of American life: income, life expectancy, home ownership, etc.,” he wrote in the New York Times. “No wonder. Our society suffers from huge inequalities. But in general, the problem isn't with the statistics. The relatively high black poverty rate means that the statistics are skewed.” It does not show that poverty is alleviated by abolishing statistics.”
“Without test scores, the people who suffer the most are the high-achieving students at relatively unknown high schools, which are less likely to send their children to Ivy League schools,” said Harvard economist David Deming. There are almost no.” “The SAT is their lifeline.”
Other professors advocate an entirely revolutionary system of admission to higher education. Eddie Comeau, a professor at the University of California, Riverside, told the Times.[h]“Winning the lottery'' would force education systems to “fundamentally rethink what it means to gain access and learn, rather than accept the status quo.''
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Some school administrators said the conversation about standardized testing is highly political. For progressives, supporting tests like the SAT and ACT can be dangerous.
Georgetown University Dean of Admissions Charles Deacon: “That's not politically correct.'' He said this in an interview with Intelligencer in 2022.
