What Are The Benefits Of Standardize College Admissions Tests

Standardised testing is something every high school student has to go through as it is a crucial and stressful part of the college application process. During their junior year, high school student’s stress levels increase as they have to take both the SATs/ACTs and AP tests. The SAT was introduced in 1926 and since then it has slowly become more integrated into the standard procedure in order to get into a university. The AP is an understandable test as it tests students on what they studies in class; the SAT on the other hand requires students to do all the learning and studying on their own time. Some students may even pay hundreds of dollars on the test-prep books and classes on top of the already expensive

There is a strong irony in our emphasis on standardized testing in a country that promotes diversity among career options for students. Tests are mandated throughout the country and students spend days preparing for the multiple exams they have to complete. Many students pay hundreds of dollars for tutoring and prep materials to improve their scores on these standardized tests. Even school syllabuses have shifted to help prepare for the big standardized tests such as the ACT and SAT.This frenzy behind standardized testing is understandable however, since colleges put a lot of weightage on standardized test scores and the government hands out thousands of dollars of scholarships to both students and schools based on the results of these exams. The Washington Post estimates the market to be a two billion annual business.

Standardized testing has been around since the early 1900’s. Today, it determines a high school student’s future. Every year juniors in high school start to prepare months in advance for the SAT’s and ACT’s. Along with the test itself, comes stress that is not necessary. The debate of standardized tests defining a student’s academic ability or not has become a recent popular controversial topic. Many colleges and universities are starting to have test optional applications because they are realizing that a single test score does not demonstrate the knowledge of a student. There is more value in a student that should rule an acceptance or rejection. In the article, “SAT Scores Help Colleges Make Better Decisions” Capterton states, “The SAT has proven to be valid, fair, and a reliable data tool for college admission” (Capterton). Capterton, president of the College Board, believes that the SAT’s and ACT’s should be used to determine a student’s acceptance because it is an accurate measure. What Capterton and deans of admissions of colleges and universities don’t know is the abundant amount of resources upper class families have for preparation, the creative talents a student has outside of taking tests, and the amount of stress they put on a 17 year old.

A young girl is excited about graduating high school and attending her first year at college. She tries hard at school and receives above-average grades. She is an active student involved in student council, band, the drama team, and peer tutoring, but her ACT scores are extremely low, disqualifying her from many universities. The young girl represents many students who are not successful at taking standardized tests because they have not developed the advanced skills required to take a test like the ACT or SAT. An academically motivated and responsible student should not be prevented from attending college because a "standard" test is not his or her standard. The current methods of testing for the ACT or SAT should be abolished and

standardized tests is that they lack a level of comprehension and are incapable of succeeding in the educational system. This belief is especially prevalent in regards to high stakes tests such as college entrance and high school graduation exams because the focus is on the test score. The perception is that these scores are the sole indicator of the student’s knowledge of a subject and their ability to succeed at a higher level of education. Therefore,

Standardized testing has been ruling over the lives of students, making or breaking them in their education without fair judgement. Tests like the SAT and the ACT count for way too much when applying to colleges, which in turn limits the student 's capabilities to thrive in an environment that would benefit them. There are many problems within a standardized test that deems them to be unreliable as a true test of knowledge. Although designed to test groups of students on intelligence, standardized testing neglects to fairly acknowledge the abilities of each unique student which reflect their true capabilities.

Students are overwhelmed with school, work, extra-curricular activities, family, etc. Perhaps standardized tests are a major contributor to students’ stress. A standardized test is any test scored in a consistent manner and requires test-takers to answer identical questions. Among the most common include the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and the American College Test (ACT). According to the article “Standardized Testing Has Negatively Impacted Public Schools” from Opposing Viewpoints in Context, the beginnings of standardized tests occurred during World War I when the American Psychological Association developed a “ground-administered test” to eliminate inefficient recruits (Solley 3). Today, standardized tests are necessary for college admission. Just last month, in March of 2016, College Board, the non-profit organization responsible for administering the SAT, altered the format of the test. It is now formatted more similar to the ACT and includes an optional essay reducing the score from 2400 to 1600. Many advocates argue standardized tests accurately measure academic intelligence and hold teachers and schools accountable. In today’s society, standardized tests have become the norm, and unfortunately, people overlook their negative effects despite research substantiating arguments about their disadvantages. Standardized tests are disadvantageous because they hinder education and contain bias.

For many years, standardized tests have been a pillar of college admissions. Students are persuaded to take the Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT) or the American College Test (ACT) because colleges believe the scores can predict an applicant’s academic success after high school. However, an increasing number of colleges have made reporting test scores optional due to inconsistencies with the tests, many of which have been emphasized by students. These inconsistencies and other problems with test distribution have led to increasing demands for standardized testing to be reformed or become optional in the admissions process. Standardized testing should be eliminated as a criterion for college applicants because the tests have made education less significant, have made scores vary among students with similar academic abilities, and have not contributed a noticeable improvement to children’s intelligence.

The purpose of this proposal is to examine current and future Iowa State University admissions decisions processes. At the present time most colleges, including Iowa State use a combination of standardized test scores, high school class rank, high school grade point average, and essays to make decisions on admissions. All of the above are good determinants of a student’s possible success in college, except standardized test scores. Standardized tests discriminate against minorities and are not a good overall indicator of a student’s potential. For these reasons and others, Iowa State should not use standardized test scores when making admissions

Misinformation, false and inaccurate information, can not only affect one’s bias but future poor decisions about consequential matters. Many of today’s spread of misinformation derives not only from the reader’s interpretation of the given bias and rhetoric within the sources, but the afterward outspread of this information. In the case of standardized testing, media often portrays it as an unnecessary and overwhelming tool used to equally assess the student population in core subjects. But, the media never shines the light on those who rely on the tests to excel in their classes. In “SAT Scores Helps Colleges Make Better Decisions, Gaston Caperton of the U.S. News and Report argues that SATs indeed gives colleges administrators a fair field

This, however, is untrue. Finland, which has consistently had one of the best school systems in the world, does not have standardized tests ("Is the Use of Standardized Tests Improving Education in America?"). Instead, they use a number of different approaches. One example is a series of stealth assessments. These are mini quizzes that can be taken several times throughout the school year using a computer program; a student's progress can be more accurately measured this way, as these assessments are more widespread than traditional tests (Kamenetz). A similar method is the game-based assessment, which is designed to test high-order thinking (Kamenetz). Not only is this technique less stressful, but it evaluates things traditional tests cannot (such as systems thinking and the ability to receive feedback). Another strategy is to rely on projects, papers, and portfolios rather than tests. The New York Performance Standards Consortium, a group that opposes standardized testing, is composed of of 28 schools that use this approach. These schools boast high graduation and college retention rates, which proves that alternatives to standardized testing can indeed work (Kamenetz). Pro-testing individuals also argue that SAT and ACT scores are vital in the college application process, but some U.S. colleges are beginning to accept other things that show students' abilities. For instance, Bard College applicants have the option to write four 2,500 word research papers to flaunt their skills. Likewise, DePaul requires research-based essay questions rather than test scores (Park). In other words, standardized tests are not only harmful to students and teachers alike, but they can be easily replaced with more useful

The opinions on standardized testing are as divided as the United States during the 2016 elections. More and more people are arguing that “our educational system has gone too far in its dependence on standardized testing” (595). As far as I’m concerned, standardized tests should not play a role in determining access to college admissions and scholarships, because the availability of resources and your chances of doing well on those tests depends on your background, family situation, location, and many other factors. Instead, they should make sure that the diplomas from all high schools are equal and that they can be certain the students have earned that diploma and know the material. The only reason why they do standardized testing is to make

The average high school student takes at least one standardized test each school year. Standardized tests are all scored the same way and test takers are given the same questions. The scores students receive play a big part in whether or not they will be accepted to the colleges they apply to. Standardized test scores are one of the most important things colleges look for when reviewing applications. Standardized tests could be successful, in theory. However, they have shown to be less accurate than hoped, to cause copious amounts of stress, and to have little to no correspondence with productive adult lives. Because of their ineffectiveness, colleges should place less importance in them when admitting new students.

Education is saturated with standardized testing. Standardized testing is throughout your whole educational career, starting with the MAP test and ending with an ACT or SAT test. The curriculum in the classroom is molded to fit test taken by each student while teachers teach to the test. According to Council of Great City Schools, “as of 2016, the average student in America takes a staggering 112 mandatory standardized tests before graduating high school.” Standardized testing is defined as same test student take under similar conditions with criteria for multiple choice or short answer questions. College are examining on test score to decide student’s future in education. “Unfortunately we cannot accept you due to your lack of testing ability” is the last thing any college student wants to hear. High School students, who already have responsible for choosing a college, a career, and focussing on school work, have to focus on one more thing that should not even be factored to college, standardized test like the ACT or SAT. If you score high enough on the MAP test, you have opportunities to achieve in advanced classes in future classes that could help for college. If

Have you ever thought about what college you want to go to after high school? In order to get into that college, you must be accepted. Colleges look for a numerous amount of criteria in order for you to get accepted, and one of those things colleges look for is your standardized test score. The standardized test is a test administered and scored in a consistent, or “standard”, way (edglossary.org). Seeing that you must get a high enough score on the test in order for your dream college to accept you, the tests are difficult, but are very worth it at the end. Colleges have been accepting students into their school with standardized test scores for more than 50 years, and with that being said, it has seemed to work pretty well (content.time.com). In the end, standardized test scores show that you deserve to go to that college, and is also a way of showing that you’ve worked hard for so long to accomplish something huge.