Should students take the SAT/ACT's?

[3smonica]

 ARTICLE ON SAT/ACT -http://www.ecampustours.com/collegeplanning/testtakingsatact/argumentsforandagainststandardizedtesting#.VEgoEpUtDX4
    The PSAT, ACT and SAT tests cause a huge commotion over whether high school students should continue taking them. They are probably known for being the biggest tests that you will take during your 4 years in high school. They are also labeled as the test which determine your future. If you get a good score colleges will want you almost immediately.

    Some might argue that its just one test you get a tolerable grade and you get into a good college… if only it was that easy. The SAT’s are not based on high school curriculums. We learn the math portion about 2 -3 years before taking this test this stresses students more than ever. Students will not remember most of the algebra they learned in 8th or 9th grade, the SAT includes algebra, therefore the students have to gain all that knowledge of that math which they lost over the years of learning completely new math topics.

   The SAT test flexes students and twists everything they learned into a completely new direction. As ecamptours states in there article, “Standardized testing adds too much stress to student lives. Students spend a lot of time stressing over the SAT/ACT when they could be focusing their energy on more important academic and social activities that could benefit them in the future.” The SAT are tests that are not useful for gaining knowledge for the future to prepare teenagers for actual life. From personal experience and from what I see some of my friends go threw ,every time any test comes on a certain subject they get really bad anxiety which may lead to health problems if its serious enough. The tests they worry about are the ones we take in school, imagine taking the SAT’s knowing most of the ivy league and high rated colleges weight it heavily. Students just stress and it doesn't really teach us anything incredibly useful.

[6dmaya]

I completely agree with the idea that the PSAT/ACT/SAT is completely absurd. These exams in no way measure a student's intelligence and quite frankly, I find it odd that in the advanced, complex society that we currently live in, we still depend on such a two dimensional view of the intellectual capabilities of a human. Not only is most of the content on these exams utterly irrelevant to our lives as independent adults, but it is also not representative of the knowledge that we have collectively acquired throughout our education thus far. It is simply unfair to sum up the 4 years spent in high school (along with the many other years spent in school in general) with a test that does give a student the proper chance to display all of their knowledge and skills.
Another thing that I've never understood about these tests is the reading comprehension portion. From what I've come to know about reading in my life, It is an incredibly personal experience. Not only is it okay for one to have a different opinion or interpretation of a certain text, but it is expected and encouraged. This is what makes reading and writing such an essential skill and experience for all people, it is subjective and its supposed to be! With that being said, how is it possible that there are entire sections devoted to answering multiple choice questions (in which there is a right and wrong answer) about a reading. Is it not expected that different students will have different perspectives and different interpretations and is that not something that should be encouraged while reading?
This information about standardized tests is no secret, so my question is- how are colleges still looking at these test scorers and weighing them enough that the become the determining factor on acceptance. This is baffling to me. Although many colleges either don't accept the scores have their submission optional, it should not be what decides if you are worthy for a certain college or not.
Beyond the stress it causes, the more important issue is that more colleges decide not give such importance to these scores.

[10mcope]

Standardized testing should not continue to be implemented for students in elementary school, high school, and or college. Students in failing school districts will be punished with less funding, making the problem worse. Not every student has the privilege of living in a district with a top-notch public school. Many inner city youth are subjected to horrendously bad schools that provide pathetic environments for learning. Drugs, gangs, guns, disruptive students, poor teachers, underfunded curricula, and other problems prevent these students from getting a quality education. Even if the student is sincere, hard-working, and disciplined, he or she may be held back by the poor learning environment. Is it really fair that students in these situations be held back from advancement simply because they weren't lucky enough to be born in a richer or safer area?

[10ganja]

I agree that it's ridiculous that our society still believes that a test of 3 hours that results in a single number can summarize accurately how much infomation a student has taken in in the span of a lifetime. It could possibly be more realistic if these tests were based on the things we learn in school, and prepared so that the things we've learned in basic public school have taught us all the information we need to know, but if you were to ask any student preparing for this test how they mean to do well, most will tell you they are taking an outside course. This is the problem with the education system in America. We teach our students based on one kind of curriculum and test them based on the expectations of an entirely different system. Therefore, we are not testing them on what they've learned in school, creating a drastic disadvantage for the majority of the population. Many students do not have the money to pay for extra classes outside of school to prepare for these standardized tests, making it so that those who are financially stable are the ones getting into the better schools, whether they have more potential than other students or not.

It is unfair for those who put in the work and do well in their classes to not get the same chance to succeed in their dream schools simply because they cannot afford to prepare for one specific test. Either the test needs to be altered so that it corresponds with what students are learning in public schools, or public schools should be offering free prep classes where less fortunate students can achieve the skills necessary to have the same chances as others with more opportunities. This means ALL public schools. As mentioned above, some people don't have the privilege of living in areas that have forward-thinking schools. If we want to make the system fair, every public high school in the country should be offering methods of helping their able minded students have the opportunity to do well. If this is not possible, then we should be disregarding the SATs/ACTs, or at the very least lessening the weight of the scores. There's no reason one test is still the deciding factor for colleges, and the stress that accompanies this type of pressure is the opposite of progress for young people. Colleges should be looking for well-rounded, ambitious young minds that have the ability and motivation to improve the world around us, not cram information into their brains long enough to do well on a test. Shift the focus to results in the real world and not results in the form of numbers on a sheet of paper, and that is when we can start moving forward in education.

[10pemma]

It's true that some people aren't good test takers and it is unfair that a child's future should be so affected by a two hour test, which is an unbelievable amount of pressure. The American school system is so focused on tests that some people have an immediate disadvantage. The SAT/ACT also requires a great deal of prep for most people, which is A. expensive, and B. extremely monopolizing of an adolescent's time. It's also very detrimental to a child's mindset on education, as they become more and more focused on memorizing answers and compromising their writing skills, and less focused on thinking for themselves. Colleges focus on a well rounded person, but the SAT/ACT score is a huge factor. Kids have enough to focus on in high school, and adding at least another two hours of prep a week is not good for anyone. If colleges are looking for someone who can take pressure and write mediocre essays in less than a half an hour, but not someone who can think critically and use their own personal experiences to create unique viewpoints, a perfect score on the SAT/ACT may be a better candidate.
So many kids work themselves sick trying to get good grades and keep their extracurriculars in check. It seems that everyone is against these giant standardized tests, but no one is doing anything to get rid of them. The extreme lack of funding to the school system is not a good way to create a strong minded generation of future leaders. These mass tests that are turning the new generation into memorizing robots cannot help inspire a new revolutionary thinking group of Americans.

[6pkatherine]

I agree that the SATs and ACTs are ridiculous ways to determine the potential and brilliance of a student. These tests are essentially able to be mastered with technique, not with knowledge and insight. The student must answer what the test-makers want to view as "correct". It is also a waste of time trying to memorize all these techniques when they basically have no connection to the countless occupations that students are strong candidates for. I also agree that it is shocking that the country has not come up with a more accurate way to determine how capable a student may be.

The time restraints are also just on their own level. It is extremely contradicting when an exam like the SAT is administered and the leaders of our country urge for today's society to be intellectual. How is anyone able to have a decent and complete thought when they are in the middle of a test that will literally determine their futures and only have roughly twenty-five minutes to process the whole section? Not to mention they will not have enough time to check for careless mistakes. I fall into the category of what the SAT considers a slow reader. I look for details to fully understand the content, using up a large fraction of the time given. This tends to always leave me somewhat behind and rushing to answer what I can in the time remaining. There is no opportunity to make connections or feel stable with what you are working on.

Towards the beginning, the idea of the SATs could have had potential of some sort; however, it led to the path of children and young adults -the new generation- not being intellectually engaged with their surroundings and that being drilled a certain pattern of a specific test is the worth of their future.

[3taliac]

I understand that colleges want to measure students on the same playing field because it’s easier for them to take a standardized test and see where each candidate stands. What I don’t understand is how anyone can think this practice is fair. One test should not represent the type of student you are. Some of the best students who are very active in their education don’t test well. Colleges can be turning blind eyes to those hard-working students. Another thing with these tests is that they are so different from what we learn in school. Many of the tricks and tips that are needed to gain high scores are never taught. In order to feel confident going in knowing every type question, you’re going to need to pay for test prep. And since not everyone is financially on the same playing field, many underprivileged students have such a disadvantage. How effective is a test based on tricks and schemes you have to pay to learn? It’s so reassuring to see that more and more respected colleges are dropping the ACT/SAT as the determining factor. These colleges look more at grades and the student as a whole.

[3bsaya]

I agree that students should not be required to take the SAT's or the ACT's. Mostly because studies have shown that there are some students who do so well in their classes, but fail almost all of their test. Many students are very bright and very intelligent, but when it comes to test taking, the nervousness and anxiety can just get to them.To determine a students future in college based on a test is absurd. Colleges could very well be overlooking very bright students. That is why it is good that colleges do interviews and such to really get to know that student personally. Furthermore, the SAT's are test based on trick questions and very simple comprehension that might be difficult for students to catch up on. What good is a test on trick questions when there is nothing really for you to gain? How will this hep us in the future? Another upsetting matter is that we have to pay an expensive fee for a test that WE DON'T WANT TO TAKE! Students whose families may be financially unstable may not be able to take this test,
(or have the money to prepare for the test) and then may not get into a college that can really help them. Even if they are exceptional students.

[10vwoods]

The concept of having to take an SAT or ACT to prove one's intellect has always baffled me. From what I have heard from friends who take SAT tutoring and just from the way that the questions are structured, all that it really takes is having the ability to decipher what the "trick" for each question is. One thing that would be more helpful in the context of having a standardized test such as this would be to make the high school curriculum directly align with the test itself. Although this would make sense, I do not agree with having standardized testing at all.
Intellect can be measured in many different ways—assigning a number to a person’s intelligence is just as arbitrary as determining a person’s suitability for real life based on a report card average. Unfortunately, both systems are practiced. This is a very unfair idea because not everyone has the same level of comprehension on academics as they might with other things. Unfortunately for these people, colleges will never know this unless they look past a number on a page.

[3pisabella]

I agree with all comments made about the defects of taking the SAT or ACT. Universities and Colleges use our test scores on these tests to determine our acceptance. This is extremely unacceptable. Colleges judge us purely on how well we did on these exams than how well we have been working for four years to be an appropriate college candidate. We do this by joining clubs, doing community service, and especially trying to succeed in school. By taking part in such, we spend so much of our high school experience doing this its hard to make time for studying for life-altering tests. Not only is making time for studying it can be extremely stressful for students. Because of the focus on the SATs and ACTs students might also not be able to succeed in their other classes they need to graduate.
In other cases, some students get into prestigious colleges and universities purely on their SAT scores. This disadvantages the students who have spent their high school career working hard to get good grades and participate in school.

[10pisabelle]

I agree that SAT's and ACT's are "incorrect" ways of measuring a student's intelligence. Students today are already occupied with school and homework, and many find it very difficult to fit SAT prep classes in their schedule. All of this stress and pressure put into taking a standardized rest can affect our health and our performance in school. A three hour test based only on math and english should not determine our acceptance into a college where we might go into other majors such as science or history. Not only is it unfair to be tested on these subjects, but SAT prep classes are not free and affordable for many families.
The problems that come with having the take the SAT's add on to the stress of getting good grades in school, keeping up with extracurricular activities, and getting enough sleep, which most teenagers lack. High school students should not have to deal with the anxiety created by the Department of Education. The SAT's should not determine our intelligence, or the colleges we get accepted to.

[6gzelda]

I agree that SATs and ACTs are not an accurate measure of ones intelligence as a student. Not only is it a test that is based completely on reading comprehension, aside from the math, but it also only suits a certain number of people. Having already taken both tests I know that the main part of the ACT is simply time management. Everyone takes tests at their own pace and it isn't fair to put such a small time limit on such a large number of questions (ex. 75 questions in 45 minutes). The College Board tries to make it seem more diverse by giving people the options to see which test is more "suited for them". The whole concept of standardized testing is a little ridiculous. It's simply another way for people to put labels on each other. For example, when I was taking the SAT there were lots of people comparing previous scores and talking about what they wanted to get on this test. It's ridiculous the amount of prep that most people put into taking one test that doesn't even test your knowledge. The basis of the tests are just strategies which is why they require so much prep. Not only should they not matter but people also spend ridiculous amounts of money in order to take the test. From buying prep books or going to prep classes even to paying to take the test. Some people may not have access to the money to pay for all of this and might to worse than people who do spend massive amounts of money on this test. This test is just one more thing to stress student out about the entire college process.

[6bausar]

The SATs/ACTs in no way, shape, or form measure a person's intelligence. The only thing that matters, based on our modern society, is that number you score. That number decides where you go to pay an insane amount of money to get an education you may or may not even use to pursue your future career. I feel like this system makes absolutely no sense. How can you use numbers and scores to view a person's overall level of intellect? There really is no way to measure that, because everyone thinks differently and on different levels. Someone with a lower score can learn the same things a person with a high score may be able to learn in college. It is really detrimental to students' self esteem if they don't get into the college they want solely based upon that score as well. For a college to say "We only want those with very high scores on this one test that doesn't really require actual knowledge you learn in school to come to our college, so that we can teach them pretty much anything that doesn't apply to what they learned from studying for the SAT/ACT." Yep, makes perfect sense. Not only are these tests irrelevant and stupid, they do not require real intelligence. The SAT and ACT require very specific (and expensive) instruction on how to take them, because they want you to think a certain way. It's all tricks. Smoke and mirrors. This is why you cannot apply basic things you learn in school to that of the SAT/ACT. Also, it's a great money-maker. High school students are having their parents pay thousands of dollars just to learn how to take a test that they've been forced to believe is important, when we really know irrelevant it is compared to everything we'll actually apply from a college education within the rest of our lifespan.

[3cgenesis]

Standardized testing in general is completely senseless. I don't understand why things like the SATs or ACTs and even regents still exist if everyone is aware of how ridiculous the whole concept of it is. A person shouldn't be identified by a number. Everyone is completely different and unique in their own way, hence they shouldn't have to take a test designed as a generalization for ALL students. The good news however, is that now more and more colleges are beginning to realize that, and are starting to put less emphasis on SAT and regents scores. Most of the material on these tests don't even measure the ability of a person to think, rather their ability to take tests. I personally work terribly under time-constraint and pressure and tend do very poorly on any tests compared to my performance in class. Tests are no reflection what-so-ever of a person's intelligence or capabilities, and students would appreciate the learning experience much more if we didn't have to worry about these major exams.

[10nangie]

I agree that students should not take the SAT/ACT's. Colleges should admit students not based on their test-taking skills but based on their
work ethic and passion for learning. Any student of any age can take the SAT and get a high score just through practice. I, for instance, am a very slow reader.
Even if I understand the text well and am able to analyze it, I can never finish reading the interminable passages in the reading section of the exam. The material on
the exam is not even taught to students in school. Most teachers don't teach proper grammar;yet, our whole future depends on it.
Since this test decides our future, it should show colleges more than just our ability to drill through a 3-hour long standardized exam.