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I think SAT/ACT is a tragic waste of time. If you add up all the hours that all the students spend practicing questions that are not relevant to any college maj

I think SAT/ACT is a tragic waste of time. If you add up all the hours that all the students spend practicing questions that are not relevant to any college major or job, it's just such a sad way to force kids to spend their time instead of learning actual things. All this time wasted so that the adults can point to a number to decide which kids get in and which don't. In terms of assessment I think grades and essays are sufficient. You might be right that it's more gameable, but is it THAT much more gameable? Should we instead waste literally tens of millions of hours of people's time so that we can say that maybe we prevented some undeserving people from entering the system? If they are truly undeserving they will fail out. And if they do well, then I guess they weren't undeserving. I also think it's important to point out that in California, if you rank in the top 9% of your class you are guaranteed acceptance to a UC. It may not be your first choice, but if you don't get into your top choice, you can go to another UC and transfer, or go to a community college and transfer.

xyzzyz 5y ago
> I think SAT/ACT is a tragic waste of time. If you add up all the hours that all the students spend practicing questions that are not relevant to any college major or job, it's just such a sad way to force kids to spend their time instead of learning actual things. All this time wasted so that the adults can point to a number to decide which kids get in and which don't. Exactly the same thing can be said about the college itself.
- MyHypatia 5y ago
  I have to disagree that college is a waste of time. I use the advanced math and engineering skills I learned in college every day. I got hands on experience volunteering in labs, learned how to organize projects, practiced my presentation skills, and learned how to write better. I found college to a be very good use of my time. On the other hand, I never used SAT/ACT style "skills" again.
  - nickthemagicman 5y ago
    The ACT/SAT literally tests geometry, algebra, vocabulary, critical thinking about a passage, and more fundamental skills. All stuff you use both in college and in the real world. Seems a little disingenuous to discount that.
    - MyHypatia 5y ago
      It's not disingenuous to question whether the SAT tests skills relevant for college "worthiness" or "preparedness". -When I took the SAT, analogies made up about one quarter of the questions on the Verbal section of the SAT. I have literally never used this skill in my life. Yet wasted an enormous amount of time memorizing vocabulary and practicing this style of question. -The essay portion does not assess writing quality. It's literally write as fast as you can, as much as you can, and mention all the right things in a way for the grader to easily see that you have mentioned them. This is not quality writing. It's a race and knowing what to say. -The math section is the only section that might be a little valuable. But it only tests up to geometry and little bit of Algebra 2. Most students competitively applying to UC's have taken more math than that, so their course history and grades are a better indicator of their preparedness. So what information is the SAT actually providing to universities? In my opinion, little to nothing.
      - dragonwriter 5y ago
        > When I took the SAT, analogies made up about one quarter of the questions on the Verbal section of the SAT. I have literally never used this skill in my life The theory was never that you literally do that contrived exercise, but that the exercise is a psychometrically valid tests of language skills that you do use. There may be legitimate challenges to that, but “I never did that exercise outside of the context of the test” isn’t even approximately one of them.
        MyHypatia 5y ago
        My point is that the SAT does not test actual skills (as you apparently agree with) and the "psychometric abilities" that it's supposed to measure are really weak indicators for college preparedness and success. If the SAT doesn't test actual skills NOR is a good indicator for college preparedness and success. What is it actually good for? It seems to mainly make life easier for college admissions staff. At an enormous cost! Kids have to waste a bunch of time upping their "psychometric ability score". Parents should spend a bunch of time and money helping their kids improve their "psychometric ability score". Teachers should spend class time teaching to the "psychometric ability score" instead of actual material, because that's what gets kids to the next step.

xyzzyz 5y ago

> I think SAT/ACT is a tragic waste of time. If you add up all the hours that all the students spend practicing questions that are not relevant to any college major or job, it's just such a sad way to force kids to spend their time instead of learning actual things. All this time wasted so that the adults can point to a number to decide which kids get in and which don't. Exactly the same thing can be said about the college itself.

MyHypatia 5y ago
I have to disagree that college is a waste of time. I use the advanced math and engineering skills I learned in college every day. I got hands on experience volunteering in labs, learned how to organize projects, practiced my presentation skills, and learned how to write better. I found college to a be very good use of my time. On the other hand, I never used SAT/ACT style "skills" again.
- nickthemagicman 5y ago
  The ACT/SAT literally tests geometry, algebra, vocabulary, critical thinking about a passage, and more fundamental skills. All stuff you use both in college and in the real world. Seems a little disingenuous to discount that.
  - MyHypatia 5y ago
    It's not disingenuous to question whether the SAT tests skills relevant for college "worthiness" or "preparedness". -When I took the SAT, analogies made up about one quarter of the questions on the Verbal section of the SAT. I have literally never used this skill in my life. Yet wasted an enormous amount of time memorizing vocabulary and practicing this style of question. -The essay portion does not assess writing quality. It's literally write as fast as you can, as much as you can, and mention all the right things in a way for the grader to easily see that you have mentioned them. This is not quality writing. It's a race and knowing what to say. -The math section is the only section that might be a little valuable. But it only tests up to geometry and little bit of Algebra 2. Most students competitively applying to UC's have taken more math than that, so their course history and grades are a better indicator of their preparedness. So what information is the SAT actually providing to universities? In my opinion, little to nothing.
    - dragonwriter 5y ago
      > When I took the SAT, analogies made up about one quarter of the questions on the Verbal section of the SAT. I have literally never used this skill in my life The theory was never that you literally do that contrived exercise, but that the exercise is a psychometrically valid tests of language skills that you do use. There may be legitimate challenges to that, but “I never did that exercise outside of the context of the test” isn’t even approximately one of them.
      - MyHypatia 5y ago
        My point is that the SAT does not test actual skills (as you apparently agree with) and the "psychometric abilities" that it's supposed to measure are really weak indicators for college preparedness and success. If the SAT doesn't test actual skills NOR is a good indicator for college preparedness and success. What is it actually good for? It seems to mainly make life easier for college admissions staff. At an enormous cost! Kids have to waste a bunch of time upping their "psychometric ability score". Parents should spend a bunch of time and money helping their kids improve their "psychometric ability score". Teachers should spend class time teaching to the "psychometric ability score" instead of actual material, because that's what gets kids to the next step.