Tuesday, August 31, 2004
SAT adds writing component
The College Board has announced a new writing component on the 2005 SAT. With the addition of this section, the SAT moves beyond simple multiple-choice, and adds an essay section:
There'll be a 35 minute multiple-choice section and a 25-minute essay period. The new section will be scored on a 200-800 scale, which means the new top score for the SAT will be 2400, rather than 1600.
As usual with anything impacting education and standards, I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, it's nice to see ETS eliminating the pure multiple-choice basis of the SAT; but on the other, does this change not stand to give ammunition to those who criticize the test for being ethnically and socioeconomically biased toward middle- and upper-class kids? Not that minorities can't write, but as a teacher who sees plenty of limited English proficiency kids, I can offer plenty of anecdotal evidence of students who are capable of high-quality work and excellent performance, but whose language barrier may prevent them from demonstrating their full abilities on a test where English aptitude is a must.
And, of course, there's the third hand, which says that LEP students must adapt; we are, after all, talking about a test for admission to American colleges, which will require their students to be able to write cogent English; and as a teacher who refuses to unnecessarily mollycoddle underperformers, I'm hardly one to criticize the Board for the new requirement.
And there's the part of me that has great affection for the SAT, my (relatively) high score on which enabled me to attend the university of my choice, despite a somewhat lackluster high-school career. (Hey, ETS; grade that last sentence for me, willya?)
And then there's the part of me that wonders why the SAT needs a writing section to cull students for college admissions; aren't the colleges who accept SAT scores still requiring their prospective students to write essays on their applications? Can't they tell from those whether the kid can write?
Maybe not. Outside the rarified atmosphere of a testing room, it's all too easy to have someone else proof, revise, or even just write the application essays. Which means the new section of the test says something troubling about the honesty, or lack of it, in our society...
Well, what's done is done. We'll see how it impacts admissions and standards of writing instruction as the years go on.
(I'd probably grade this post about a 450-600; verbose, meandering, and unfocused.)
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Writing is a core skill needed for success in both college and the workplace. Research has shown that a student's ability to write a first draft of a short, timed essay relates positively to the student's ability to perform successfully in college courses that require writing. The addition of the writing section will reinforce the importance of writing skills throughout a student's education and support the academic achievement of all students, bolstering their chances for academic success in college.
There'll be a 35 minute multiple-choice section and a 25-minute essay period. The new section will be scored on a 200-800 scale, which means the new top score for the SAT will be 2400, rather than 1600.
As usual with anything impacting education and standards, I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, it's nice to see ETS eliminating the pure multiple-choice basis of the SAT; but on the other, does this change not stand to give ammunition to those who criticize the test for being ethnically and socioeconomically biased toward middle- and upper-class kids? Not that minorities can't write, but as a teacher who sees plenty of limited English proficiency kids, I can offer plenty of anecdotal evidence of students who are capable of high-quality work and excellent performance, but whose language barrier may prevent them from demonstrating their full abilities on a test where English aptitude is a must.
And, of course, there's the third hand, which says that LEP students must adapt; we are, after all, talking about a test for admission to American colleges, which will require their students to be able to write cogent English; and as a teacher who refuses to unnecessarily mollycoddle underperformers, I'm hardly one to criticize the Board for the new requirement.
And there's the part of me that has great affection for the SAT, my (relatively) high score on which enabled me to attend the university of my choice, despite a somewhat lackluster high-school career. (Hey, ETS; grade that last sentence for me, willya?)
And then there's the part of me that wonders why the SAT needs a writing section to cull students for college admissions; aren't the colleges who accept SAT scores still requiring their prospective students to write essays on their applications? Can't they tell from those whether the kid can write?
Maybe not. Outside the rarified atmosphere of a testing room, it's all too easy to have someone else proof, revise, or even just write the application essays. Which means the new section of the test says something troubling about the honesty, or lack of it, in our society...
Well, what's done is done. We'll see how it impacts admissions and standards of writing instruction as the years go on.
(I'd probably grade this post about a 450-600; verbose, meandering, and unfocused.)
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