Pros And Cons Of Standardized Testing Requirements

Pro: Public High Schools Lowering Standardized Testing Requirements When considering the quantifiable number of students applying to college each year, roughly in the tens of millions, colleges become swamped with numerous applications. The main method colleges use to compare these applicants is through standardized test scores, from SATs and ACTs, which assist them in weeding out the less qualified applicants. What are the circumstances behind the current system? Why is it that we need to improve the current standards of the education of high school students entering college? What are the consequences of passing unequipped students? Public High schools should refrain from lowering standardized testing requirements due to vast influx of applicants,

However, with the numerous counties spread across the United States, counting in at 3,007- the diversity amongst their methods of teaching is impossible to compare in a college’s admission office alone. So, the chosen method of comparison is their standardized test scores. Granted, they take the student’s grade point average into account, but this score does not determine a student's knowledge of basic information that a college requires. Each county has different set of rules and requirements regarding their student’s schooling. For example, one county may have leeway amongst student’s grades by rounding grades up that are .5 away from a letter grade. However, others will have a strict policy only accepting grades in their own respective range. Certain counties can also make classes exponentially harder by instituting a common core that is far more difficult than a county adjacent to it. We need to better improve the education of these high school students taking these standardized tests. The factors determining the GPA of an individual student are countless and impossible to compare to every other student in the United States. So, the comparison of students with their standardized test scores is qualified. So, you have to keep in mind: every student receives the same test, every student receives the same questions; every student receives an equal chance of proving their intellectual

According to Gerald Graff’s Hidden Intellectualism “students harbor intellectual resources-- "street smarts"--that go untapped by formal schooling.” This is a qualified argument, however he neglects to address the ever-pressing problem of a student’s determination. A student may be a genius, but if he or she is not properly motivated, then there’s no reason for a college to go out of it’s way to accept him. Especially when they’re considering thousands of other applicants who are more qualified and have more motivation. If the student was able to “tap” into his/her street smarts, then they should have been smart enough to understand that doing well in school and the tests is a must if they want to enter a good college. However, this problem is instantly solved when their standardized test scores are compared. As previously stated, there are too many factors involving each individual’s education in the numerous counties, so their intellectual aptitude is tested when they take these standardized test scores. It’s a test that measures their cumulative knowledge that they attained all throughout high school, and colleges are able to effectively pair them up together to see who’s the most qualified to study on their campus. When they have these applications, colleges don’t know a person’s life story, they don’t know one’s faults or their shortcomings. All they see are scores that determine how hard-working and