Should the SAT Be Optional for College Admission Research Paper

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Future for the SAT?

Today, the American College Testing (ACT) and Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) and SAT Subject Tests are among the most commonly used standardized tests to evaluate academic potential and progress. In the case of the SATs, these standardized tests are specifically designed to evaluate student academic readiness for entry into college. According to the SAT's vendor, The College Board, "These exams provide a path to opportunities, financial support, and scholarships, in a way that's fair to all students. The SAT and SAT Subject Tests keep pace with what colleges are looking for today, measuring the skills required for success in the 21st century" (About the tests, 2015, para. 2). Unfortunately, far too many educators and educational institutions use the results of standardized tests such as the SATs that do not conform to this stated purpose, making the need for a careful analysis concerning appropriate applications for these tools an essential part of their use. To this end, this paper review the relevant literature to explain that standardized achievement tests such as the SATs are capable of predicting academic ability by measuring cognitive ability, but academic ability cannot predict cognitive ability (Finn, Kraft & West, 2015). Because improving cognitive abilities contributes to academic performance, schools are in a good position to help prepare students for the rigors of college, but some authorities argue that standardized achievement tests such as the SATs are being used inappropriately and for purposes other than those for which they were intended. Therefore, the various psychometric properties of the SAT will also be discussed in support of this assertion, followed by a summary of the research and important findings concerning standardized achievement tests in general and the SATs in particular in the conclusion.

Thesis Statement

The importance of scoring well on standardized achievement tests cannot be overstated. In fact, The College Board points out that, "Many colleges use the SAT Subject Tests for admission, for course placement, and to advise students about course selection. Some colleges specify the SAT Subject Tests that they require for admission or placement; others allow applicants to choose which tests to take" (About the tests, 2015, para. 3). Clearly, the SATs represent truly high=stakes testing, but there remains some debate over the utility of using standardized academic tests for these purposes as discussed further below.

Article Summary

Perhaps the overarching criticism of standardized achievements tests such as the SAT is that the force teachers to "teach to the test" rather than focusing on individual learning needs and critical thinking skills. For instance, the results of a recent study involving a large sample (N=1,367) of 8th grade students conducted by Finn et al. (2015) found that, "Cognitive skills predict academic performance, so schools that improve academic performance might also improve cognitive skills" (p. 1). In an effort to evaluate the effects that schools can have on cognitive skills and academic performance among students attending traditional, exam, and charter public schools, these researchers compared the results of standardized achievement test scores to measures of cognitive skills students. According to Finn and her associates, "Test scores and gains in test scores over time correlated with measures of cognitive skills. These findings suggest that schools that improve standardized achievement tests do so primarily through channels other than cognitive skills" (p. 2).

Merely improving student performance on standardized achievement tests, though, may simply be a reflection of a school's teachers "teaching to the test" and certainly do not correspond to improvements in cognitive abilities, an attribute that is central to success in college. The findings that emerged from a study by Helm (2008) concerning national averages for acceptance rates at dental schools based on standardized achievement tests also suggest that even though a widely used test such as the SAT is used to evaluate student readiness for college, these measures may reflect test-taking ability rather than true critical thinking skills that are needed in a college or higher educational settings.

Other authorities maintain that standardized achievement tests measure student abilities unfairly, with a "hidden curriculum" that favors more affluent members of society. For example, a systematic review of the literature presented by LaPoint (2008) emphasizes that students who score well on standardized achievement tests frequently enjoy the added advantages of living in communities where there are outside educational opportunities and families that participate in the educational process. In this regard, LaPoint (2008) advises that, "High academic achievement is related to students' exposure to quality family- and community-based learning activities that occur in both in-school -- and out-of school environments" (p. 676). Because many lower-income families do not enjoy these same advantages, LaPoint and like-minded critics argue that, "These activities are, in fact, the 'hidden curriculum' of high academic achievement -- what upper income parents, families, and community members provide for their children" (p.

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676). Although it is reasonable to suggest that these inequities are evident in virtually any standardized measure of academic achievement, LaPoint (2008) specifically implicates the SAT as being representative of these disparate trends in academic testing, lending support to this paper's guiding thesis statement indicated above.

Likewise, a qualitative analysis by Mendoza-Denton (2014) found that the overemphasis on performing well on standardized achievement tests placed minority students at a disadvantage for other reasons as well. In this regard, Mendoza-Denton reports that, "Academic performance and achievement are as much influenced by cognitive processes as they are by relational processes, and that concerns about discrimination and being the target of prejudice serve to undermine students' performance" (2014, p. 466). Citing significant disparities in testing scores between black and white students in the U.S. over time, Mendoza-Denton (2014) concludes that standardized achievement tests undervalue the academic achievement of minority students.

In addition, other authorities criticize the overreliance on standardized achievement tests by educators to the exclusion of the other needs of their students, particularly minority students. For instance, Atkinson (2012) refers to standardized test scores as being "the coin of the realm in public education in the United States" and adds that this has "widespread ramifications not only for schools but also for communities and businesses" (p. 201). These "widespread ramifications" include the enormous pressure that is being placed on educators to produce students who score high on standardized academic tests because the stakes are high for everyone involved besides just the students. In this regard, Atkinson points out that, "The emphasis on test scores as indicators of student achievement, school effectiveness, and community prosperity brings with it increased efforts and urgencies to improve those scores, especially in schools that struggle to meet state-determined goals" (2012, p. 202).

Not surprisingly, these pressures can easily translate into efforts by teachers, especially those in lower-income communities, to teach to the test as noted above, but the ramifications extend even further. For example, the qualitative study by Atkinson (2012) of 18 interviews with elementary school teachers found that:

When measures of and decisions about progress in student learning, teacher quality, and school effectiveness rely primarily on improved test scores, attention will narrow to strategically and superficially rais[ing] test scores rather than address[ing] more complex issues related to student learning, educational resources, and social inequities. (p. 203)

Moreover, Atkinson concludes that not only is too much classroom attention being focused on preparing students for standardized achievement tests, the results of these tests are being used for the allocation of resources that place underperforming schools at an even greater disadvantage, meaning essentially that they are caught in a vicious Catch 22 situation in which they will never be able to catch up with other schools (Atkinson, 2012).

Given the growing body of evidence concerning the problems that are associated with standardized achievement tests, some colleges have implemented SAT-optional programs. For instance, a critical analysis of the SAT's current status presented by Williams (2014) reports that, "Due to the alleged biases inherent in the SAT and the test's limited ability to predict student success, many institutions are moving toward a test-optional model in which students may but are not required to submit standardized test scores with their applications" (p. 70).

Finally, some educational researchers have attempted to defend the status quo by advancing spurious arguments such as "When other relevant factors are taken into account, economic resources are unrelated to student achievement" (Klick, 2009, p. 81). Citing an enormous body of evidence to the contrary in a systematic review, Klick does concede some advantages to standardized achievement tests, including the fact that declining scores during the late 20th century forced lawmakers to allocate additional resources to the country's educational system and refocus effort on curriculum development. Nevertheless, Klick (2009) argues that far too many of the scarce resources that have been allocated have been misused by focusing classroom efforts on improving standardized test scores rather than actually preparing young learners for college, a finding, together with the other studies, that lends further credence to this paper's guiding thesis statement.

Notwithstanding the criticisms that have been leveled against it, the SAT does appear to represent a useful tool for….....

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