ipl-logo

SAT Scores Pros And Cons

940 Words4 Pages

The SAT and ACT have come under scrutiny for unreliability when it comes to college preparedness. Even though there is support for the test and its ability to predict a student’s first year performance, studies from a number of other sources have found negatives that come along with these tests. From elitism to inhibiting brilliant minds, evidence shows that these two tests are more trouble than they are worth. Colleges are even beginning to react to the negatives involved with the tests. With these negatives becoming more apparent, many colleges have adopted a test optional approach, instead of basing acceptance off of test scores. With colleges taking actions such as these, a conclusion can be drawn about said testing. ACT and SAT scores …show more content…

Some studies have shown that ACT and SAT scores can aid in predicting a student’s chances of success during the first year of college. “Overwhelming evidence shows that SAT scores and high school GPA in combination are the best predictors of college success” (Sanchez). This statement is logical, in that the more data there is available, the more resources can be used to make accurate predictions. Along with this, another benefit in the form of motivation also comes with the tests. With such high pressures, students would be incentivized to perform at peak potential, and gain confidence and have abilities boosted as a whole if a significant score is produced. “93% of studies on student testing, including the use of large scale and high stakes standardized tests, found a positive effect on student achievement” (“Standardized Tests - Procon”). The statement by Procon gives foundation to the idea that tests putting pressure on students will push ones limits, and improve one’s abilities. These abilities may carry on into the early years of college, and help an individual push through. Pressure can be negative however, and not everything about the SAT and ACT is …show more content…

Many colleges have already made these tests optional, and have seen improvements. “...test - optional admissions improves diversity [and] does not undermine academic quality” (Westervelt). The removal of these tests allows for more students to have a chance at getting into college. Intelligent students who test poorly will have the chance to benefit from more schooling as well. In addition to this, colleges would be able to base admissions off of a more reliable data set. This reliable data set is of course high school grades and GPA. “Even the test maker admits that high school grades predict first year college grades better than ACT scores” (“The ACT: Biased”). The maker of the test says that high school grades are a better predictor than the test. Even though it’s true that the test in combination with GPA is the best predictor of first year college success, high schools grades alone are effective and without the negatives of the tests. High school GPA is a collection of performance throughout a four year time span, which is substantial compared to the single point of data given by the SAT or ACT. Colleges could easily use high school grades to determine if a student should be admitted into their campus, and base scholarships off of those years of

Show More
Related

Test Scores In Brave New World

349 Words | 2 Pages

In the scholarly journal “Brave New World: How Test-Optional Policies Could (And Should) Change College Admissions,” written by William C. Hiss and Valerie W. Franks, Hiss and Franks concluded that students who do not send test scores to institutions tend to perform just as well as student’s that send test scores. Hiss and Franks shares their research from a total of 37,000 students from public and private institutions that were accepted to college without sending any test scores. These students were then studied closely by their high school grade point average (GPA), cumulative college GPA, and standardized test scores. The end results explained that there was a very small difference between submitters and non-submitters. Standardized test

Read More

Summary Of No The SAT Is Not Required By Justin Peligri

1398 Words | 6 Pages

Over time, the SAT’s format has changed to better measure a student’s ability and potential. Excessive stress is put on students to do well on the SAT’s, and causes them unnecessary strain. As college admissions become more and more competitive, the need for higher test scores has increased, despite fatal flaws in the SAT test itself. Although the SAT is used by thousands of colleges and taken by millions of students, many students' scores do not reflect their true abilities, and therefore the SAT test is useless.

Read More

Analysis Of The Dangerous Myth Of Grade Inflation By Alfie Kohn

1302 Words | 6 Pages

But has the SAT ever truly been a good way to evaluate student’s academic abilities? Many teens do not test well, SAT questions are written in a way confusing to students, and the test is taken in high school, before they are exposed to college material. The number of teens taking the SAT has increased significantly in the past few years, further invalidating the statement that overall scores are

Read More

The Pros And Cons Of SAT

267 Words | 2 Pages

The Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) is an impelling test to get admission in most of the U.S colleges. All high school seniors during the time of December are actively preparing for victory against the four hour strenuous exam, the SAT. The reason is that SAT score determines the fate and dreams of students. Standardized test scores play a crucial role in student’s future as it is believed to address student’s ability to think, reason, and act so that they can be successful in college life. However, SAT is a huge burden to students and is a biased test.

Read More

Optional Standardized Testing

1304 Words | 6 Pages

Currently, there are 850 test optional colleges in the USA and this number is slowly growing (Sheffer). William Hiss believes making standardized tests optional will allow more people to get a higher education (Sheffer). Optional testing creates a more equal opportunity for everyone. A Wake Forest study showed that the “average high school GPA of incoming freshman increased after the school stopped using standardized test scores as a factor in admissions” (Balf). It was also found that higher GPAs were maintained in college (Jaschik).

Read More

Argumentative Essay On ACT And SAT Scores

729 Words | 3 Pages

GPA’s a better representation on a student’s performance in school. A student’s high school grade point average is the reflection of a student’s academic performance through their four years (Sheffer, 2014). When colleges look at someone’s ACT or SAT score they only see how well the student is in a limited time frame. Many colleges and Universities do take GPA into consideration, but ACT and SAT scores seem to be more important. Colleges and Universities should focus more on a student’s grade point average for a better representation of the student’s

Read More

Unfair Standardized Testing

1776 Words | 8 Pages

Furthermore, both Hiss et al. (2014) and the Tufts study (DiMaria, 2014) found that students admitted through the test-optional or unconventional admissions approaches were more likely to be underrepresented minority students. Thus, moving away from use of standardized tests would give thousands of students the opportunity to be recognized, even if their skills don’t fit with the testing model.

Read More

The Pros And Cons Of The SAT

1241 Words | 5 Pages

SATS and ACTS have been used for numerous years as a way to gauge a student’s academic success while in college. Students have the choice which test they would prefer to take and most colleges do not prefer one test over the other. There are a few key differences between the SAT and ACT, which may make one test more suitable than the other for those taking the tests. Many studies have proven that the SAT and ACT are not the best judge of future success, and that colleges should focus their applications more on past grades and accomplishments to decide which students should be accepted to their university. SATs and ACTs are not an effective measure of college readiness and future academic success.

Read More

SAT Vs Act Persuasive Essay

928 Words | 4 Pages

The SAT or ACT exam is not an accurate measure of a student's aptitude for college. Not all students can take the SAT or ACT and make a high enough score to get into the college they want to get into. “Teens across the U.S. are standing by their mailboxes, waiting anxiously for the envelopes that will seal their academic fate. It’s college admissions season and for many students a lot hinges on how well they performed in standardized testing.” Some students just can not perform well taking the SAT or ACT in an environment that they feel stressed in.

Read More

Argumentative Essay: Should The SAT Get Paid?

1026 Words | 5 Pages

While the argument presents a great benefit for colleges across the united states, the testing scores fail to do justice to students because the scores do not represent the actual skills that the students need to succeed in college. To clarify, the SAT, particularly in the math section, tests students by how quick they can substitute an answer choice for a variable in the problem and not by how the students can critically think about a solution for a question. Therefore, the SAT fails as a proper indicator of skills necessary for success in college. In addition, this disadvantage in sat testing overwhelms the benefits that sat testing

Read More

SAT Persuasive Essay

641 Words | 3 Pages

Taking the SAT can be one of the most stressful days in the lives of high schoolers based on the fact that their score can determine their future of getting into a prestigious college, which nowadays is key to living a successful life. Students study for months, spend hours cramming information, and learn countless tricks on how to get the best score that they can in order to be able to send their results off to their dream universities. To their knowledge, the result they receive on this one test is enough to either make their future what they always wished it to be or forever dishearten the idea that if they work hard, it will pay off in the end. Throughout the modern era, we are taught to believe that the SAT is the most important test

Read More

Standardized Testing Research Paper

895 Words | 4 Pages

Standardized tests are very common in today’s modern society. They are used as a tool to measure a person’s performance and indicate how their estimated performance will be in a college class. Every year hundreds of students take the ACT or SAT in order to get accepted into their college of choice and to receive scholarships, but they fail to see the problems with these standardized tests. As more and more people take these tests, the national average score falls causing doubt in the extremely important system. This is leading people to question whether or not the ACT and SATs are accomplishing what they were created to do.

Read More

Pros And Cons Of Nuclear Power

300 Words | 2 Pages

Nuclear Power Nuclear power plants are the highest source of power. Making or building more power plants in the State of Connecticut will open up new job opportunities,ect.. The State of Connecticut should create more nuclear power plants. The benefits of nuclear power outweigh the risks. Nuclear power plants are known to be the fastest, cleanlier, and have no health or injury concern.

Read More

Persuasive Essay On Standardized Testing

518 Words | 3 Pages

Standardized, timed tests that determine whether a student is accepted into college puts an extraordinary amount of unnecessary weight on a student’s shoulder. It’s difficult for most students to truly preform their best and exemplify their knowledge on a timed test that can basically determine the

Read More

ACT And SAT Scores

1836 Words | 8 Pages

Should ACT and SAT scores be considered when applying to college? The ACT and SAT are standardized test that are supposed to measure the intelligence of students. One of the two test are required for first year applicants applying to a university. There are a lot of huge problems when thinking about the ACT, formally known at the (American College Testing Program Assessment) and SAT formally known as the (Scholastic Aptitude Test). (Fairtest)

Read More

More about SAT Scores Pros And Cons

Related Topics

Open Document