The SAT is probably one of the hardest tests that most of us take in our lifetimes. Words you’ve never seen before, endless math equations, and overall anxiety. I was among the first crop of students that had to take the “new” SAT that they unveiled nine years ago with the mandatory essay and the high score of 2400. Oh, goody. In any case, it made me more than a little bitter when I heard the news yesterday that they were revamping the test.
The exam will return to a 1600-point grade scale and the essay will be optional. There will also be changes made to the content of the test. The College Board has decided to remove some of those impossible vocabulary words in exchange for words that students are likely to see in college and careers. How kind of them!
According to the Washington Post:
“It is time for an admissions assessment that makes it clear that the road to success is not last-minute tricks or cramming, but the learning students do over years,” David Coleman, the College Board’s president, said in a speech Wednesday in Austin. The SAT, he said, “will no longer stand apart from . . . daily studies and learning.”
That’s not all the College Board has up its sleeve. They will also be teaming up with the nonprofit Khan Academy to provide free test prep for students. That’s right, no more having to spend a gajillion dollars on the hope that your child will get the leg up on a great score.
“The College Board cannot stand by while some test-prep providers intimidate parents at all levels of income into the belief that the only way they can secure their child’s success is to pay for costly test preparation and coaching,” Coleman said. “If we believe that assessment must be a force for equity and excellence, it’s time to shake things up.”
I wholeheartedly support anything that equalizes the SATs. Test scores have long been correlated with income, so hopefully having the free test prep will make a difference. However, all these changes are not coming out of the goodness of the College Board’s heart.
In recent years the ACT, the alternative to the SATs, has gained in popularity. More colleges and universities have been accepting the ACT and many students have been flocking to the exam because it’s shorter and the essay is optional. Lest we forget, the College Board loses money when people aren’t taking the SATs. Hence, we have a brand spanking new exam to appeal to students.
The changes won’t take place until 2016, just in time for the current freshmen to take the new SATs. Lucky bastards.
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