As bad publicity and multiple lawsuits pile up on institutions like Harvard because of their policy for racial preference in admissions… an alternative method of discrimination has emerged thanks to the College Board.
The SAT will now compute an “Adversity Score” for each student and modify their SAT result. In keeping with fairness and transparency - this modifier will be kept secret from the student and post-secondary institution.
Edit: This is a GOLDEN opportunity for a challenger to develop their own objective entrance exam and offer that as a basis for entry. The post-secondary institutions that are truly devoted to meritocracy will likely embrace this. It won’t be long before there is a clear separation in performance between the ‘social-engineering’ schools like Harvard and the actual engineering schools like CalTech.
Standardized test have always been a joke, and have largely cemented advantages that kids in affluent/educated families have. It is also astonishing how much specialized tutoring and test prep can improve scores.
There’s been some very interesting studies at medical schools in the UK where kids from specific post codes receive lower offers than say, Eton, for example
At the end of the first year of medical school and from there on out, they score as well as there peers
Leaving aside buying a place at uni. It’s unquestionably harder for kids in shit schools to score as highly as those at places like Eton / Harrow / rodean where kids are prepared for uni from birth
As bad publicity and multiple lawsuits pile up on institutions like Harvard because of their policy for racial preference in admissions… an alternative method of discrimination has emerged thanks to the College Board.
While I’m not a fan of it…you realize the article you linked said there are 15 parameters. If you look at race and gender, you’re at 2 of 15.
It appears you’re interested in race. So, 1 in 15. Not sure if that one is weighted heavier than all the 14 other factors, but it is still just one.
So, what basis do you have for being so alarmed…based on race?
In theory, if race is just one of 15 factors…impoverished white males stand to meet perhaps at least 12 to 13 parameters of 15. So, not a bad shake.
As bad publicity and multiple lawsuits pile up on institutions like Harvard because of their policy for racial preference in admissions… an alternative method of discrimination has emerged thanks to the College Board.
While I’m not a fan of it…you realize the article you linked said there are 15 parameters. If you look at race and gender, you’re at 2 of 15.
It appears you’re interested in race. So, 1 in 15. Not sure if that one is weighted heavier than all the 14 other factors, but it is still just one.
So, what basis do you have for being so alarmed…based on race?
In theory, if race is just one of 15 factors…impoverished white males stand to meet perhaps at least 12 to 13 parameters of 15. So, not a bad shake.
“According to documents posted on New Trier’s website, 226 of 935, or** **24 percent, of Juniors taking April’s school wide ACT received some sort of accommodation for the test, a number confirmed by administrative staff.”
national average is for 5% of Juniors to get accomodation.
the admissions officers I’m aware of are very well able to parse a kid’s adversity score without an adversity score. They know the schools, or get to know them.
Possibly this benefits offices that do less intensive reads of applicants. Or it’s mainly cosmetic.
Don’t see very much changing as a result, besides another level of angst and paranoia for already apeshit parents of good but not stellar applicants.
“According to documents posted on New Trier’s website, 226 of 935, or** **24 percent, of Juniors taking April’s school wide ACT received some sort of accommodation for the test, a number confirmed by administrative staff.”
national average is for 5% of Juniors to get accomodation.
Should I even ask why you’re reading a HS paper?
I personally feel all accommodation should be abolished
So, what basis do you have for being so alarmed…based on race?
You misunderstood. I am not alarmed that they are gaming the system based on race. nor on Zip Code. Nor parents income. Nor on any other factor.
I am alarmed that they are gaming the system. period. I have seen what planned equality initiatives do - in the long run they hurt those they are supposed to help.
When I read stuff like this before, I used to think, “Wait until they get into the real world and everyone only cares about results and not where you came from. These kids are gonna get creamed.”
Now, knowing the “real world” we live in, I think, “Why did it take so long for the SATs to add non-performance based criteria?”
I just hope they let me know my airplane pilot’s or heart doctor’s adversity score.
That will be all sorts of fun! Interesting that race is not one of the criteria. I see this as hastening the end of standardized tests.
That’s already been happening for a while. Schools have seen that performance in college does not align with SAT performance. My daughter just went through the application process and SAT’s were optional at a lot of very good schools, e.g., Bates and Bowdoin.
That’s impressive. My brother went there and I don’t remember it being that hard to get into. But that was in the 80’s.
It wasn’t that hard to get into. I know a lot of people that went there in the early 90’s. As I recall, its a fairly reasonable college, cost wise, and thus, has increased applications that perhaps are driving the criteria pretty high.