Even the test's founding father, Carl Brigham, once voiced his misgivings about the fairness of standardized testing, stating that the system ignored factors such as schooling, family background, and familiarity with English.
The debate over the value of the SAT as an effective tool in college admission practices grew louder in early 2006, when a new controversy surfaced. College Board officials realized that thousands of tests had been misscored.
While officials from the College Board claim that all scoring errors were addressed and corrected in that situation, the scoring debacle re-energized the debate.
Some colleges are responding. A growing number are dropping the requirement for standardized test scores, and relying more heavily on grades, interviews, and essays.
The Good
Standardized testing does have its supporters. Most colleges do weigh test scores quite heavily as a determining factor in the admission process. Why?
It serves as a standard, after all. According to many admissions officials, there simply must be some sort of uniform measuring stick. Grades can be misleading, since there is no real standard for high schools.
It provides an incentive for students. Every student knows the requirements for the school of his or her dreams. Standardized tests give students a tool for measuring ability and achievement. If a student knows that her/his dream college requires a minimum score of 2200, s/he will try hard to improve abilities and achieve that score.
The SAT provides an indicator of strengths and weaknesses. Since the SAT provides individual scores for math, English, and writing, the scores can help students identify areas that need extra focus. This is important when it comes to preparing for a tough college curriculum.
The SAT measures students' reading comprehension. One essential skill that students will need in college is reading comprehension. A great reading ability truly is an indicator of potential success.
The Bad
More and more people are making the claim that the test is unfair to some students, and that it does not provide any indication of potential success in college.
According to a poll conducted by Public Agenda, a nonpartisan public research organization, 44% of Americans doubt the ability of standardized tests to measure potential success in college. Many detractors make the following claims.
The test favors students from English-speaking homes. While students may be fluent in English themselves, they may come from households where English is not the dominant language.
Those students may have problems when it comes to identifying subtle differences in word connotations and problems in sentence structure.
It favors students from affluent homes and neighborhoods. According to data from FairTest, an organization that promotes fair and open testing, students who come from high income households do score higher.
The disparity could come from a number of factors. Parents and well-funded schools often pay for additional preparation for their students. Furthermore, many people claim that students from low-income families can face hardships and hurdles that don't occur to many board members and college officials.
It adds pressure to a stressful situation. Let's face it: some students just don't respond well to stress. Why should they be penalized?
There is no magic potion to determine a student's potential success in college. University officials have little choice but to use the best tool available. Standardized tests fill that role. For now, anyway.
