Standardizing Student Readiness for College
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| My little sister, a high school senior and basketball team captain (the short one) |
One day after class, Sarah approached her English teacher hesitantly and said, "I don't know if I want to go to college, but I want to apply anyway just in case. But I need some help because I don't know what to do." Her teacher seemed very happy to hear that. She replied, "I think that's great, Sarah. I think you'll do great in college. The first thing you'll want to do is make an account with College Board and take the SAT." "College Board?" Sarah asked. She had heard of the SAT, but she had no idea that colleges had an official board. "Yes," her teacher said, "College Board is the organization that regulates the SAT and kind of regulates the whole college admission process [Authoritative Organization]."
Over the next couple of weeks, Sarah met with her teacher after class to prepare for her college application. She researched a few schools on the College Board website and picked a few that seemed to be a good match for her. Her teacher also explained the admissions process and helped Sarah take the first steps toward completing it. She explained that the SAT was a standardized test that colleges used to objectively compare students from different schools and with different experiences [Regulating Standard]. Sarah realized that taking the SAT would be an important part of her college admission so she decided to take an SAT prep course.
Sarah barely made the registration deadline for the SAT prep course. That first Saturday morning was a little too early for Sarah. When she walked in, one of the school administrators was talking to the group of students seated around lunch tables in the cafeteria. She said, "This SAT preparation course will be very helpful to you because you will become familiar with the SAT and official College Board resources and we will connect you to people who can help you in your preparation [Authoritative Publication]. The most important thing to remember is that the SAT doesn't test your readiness for college; it tests your ability to pass the SAT [Challenging Standards]."
The next Monday after class, Sarah asked her teacher about what was said as she entered the SAT prep. "That's technically true," her teacher said, "College Board holds events like the annual College Board forum where the standards are talked about and created, but the tests are created by full-time test developers, not teachers [Influential Event]. So as much as the SAT is good for college admissions boards, the test may not be the best assessment of a student." Although slightly disappointed, Sarah understood that the SAT was a necessary evil if she wanted to complete her college applications. For all this trouble, I sure hope I don't blow it, she thought.
I really enjoyed your article and the story of your sister. How does it end? From your perspective, does College Board do an effective and fair job of creating a college admission standard or should the way we apply to college be changed?
ReplyDeleteI like the fact that we've all been through this process but don't see it as an institutional authority or have a name for all of these procedures.
ReplyDeleteThat is a great point that you bring up. Do these tests really test our knowledge and college readiness or just our ability to take tests?
ReplyDeleteNathaniel: This is a dramatization of my sister's story (whose name isn't even Sarah). She took the SAT over the summer. But she really does feel this way about college. She had expressed her turmoil and confusion about college and the application process, which is what lead me to wanting to analyze the rhetoric in this "field" that I haven't really been able to define yet. She is applying to one university and getting her information ready for a few CCs.
ReplyDeleteI don't know if standardized tests are a good indication of college readiness. But I do know that they provide objective data for admissions departments to help base a decision on. Especially when applicants have differing extracurriculars and even GPAs come from different coursework and difficulties. So I don't think it's a bad thing, I just don't know that it's a great thing either.