LogFAQs > #939601725

Standardized testing has its advantages and disadvantages. In theory one big advantage is that it's standardized; every student takes the same test (or at least an equivalent test) which allows you to compare results directly and see who did better or worse. On the other side, one big disadvantage is that standardized tests don't really measure for anything other than "ability to take a standardized test". Plenty of brilliant students do horribly on standardized tests, and plenty of less bright students do very well on standardized tests.

I guess what it really comes down to is, if you get rid of standardized tests for the purposes of college admissions then what criteria are you judging students on at that point? If your solution to getting rid of the SAT/ACT is to replace it with a standardized test your school or system of schools designs and controls, that's probably not a good idea. If instead you replace that assessment with more personal, interview- or essay-based assessments, I think that would be more likely to give you a more exact idea of who the student is and what they're capable of.

All of this has made me realize that college admissions officer is a really complex crapshoot of a job that I'm glad I don't have.

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Besides, marijuana is far more harmful than steroids. - BlitzBomb
I headbang to Bruckner.