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If you have an admission process based on a standardized test and everyone named "Smith" decides to game the system by prepping heavily for the test then you wi

If you have an admission process based on a standardized test and everyone named "Smith" decides to game the system by prepping heavily for the test then you will have a lot of students named "Smith" in your school. The answer is not to create a quota for people named "Smith". The answer is to create admission criteria that are not easily gamed.

Gareth321 5y ago
Is studying hard really "gaming the system"? The rules are clear for everyone: learn the material and you will do well. The solution here seems simple: provide additional study support for people not named Smith. Unfortunately, most of the academic achievement gap is because of what happens in the home, and this is a place where lawmakers have been reluctant to intervene for obvious reasons. Lawmakers cannot force parents to prioritise studying or academic achievement, and while parents from certain demographics continue to show lower involvement and encouragement in their children's academic outcomes (https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110505103345.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110505103345.h... - data here: https://www.bls.gov/tus/ https://www.bls.gov/tus/) the gap will persist.
- SyzygistSix 5y ago
  Studying to pass the SAT is gaming the system if ideally we want well-rounded, whole people to be the elite leadership in the future. Not that including extracurriculars doesn't weight admissions towards the children of current elites. But the idea is that multiple metrics cancel out the biases of the individual metrics. And I understand some people are okay with elite education and others think that is itself the problem though.
  - 0des 5y ago
    Well rounded and whole is an odd term. Can you explain that another way? Everyone who becomes sufficiently specialized and proficient in one thing is limited in the breadth of their experiences due to their metaphorical 10,000 hours being spent somewhere else (study).
    - SyzygistSix 5y ago
      Since Harvard is undoubtedly where so many future leaders come from (perhaps another entirely different problem), a better description might be leadership qualities.
      - cuteboy19 5y ago
        And according to Harvard, Asians conveniently score lower personality scores.
        0des 5y ago
        Learning how such a thing is calculated would be interesting.

Gareth321 5y ago

Is studying hard really "gaming the system"? The rules are clear for everyone: learn the material and you will do well. The solution here seems simple: provide additional study support for people not named Smith. Unfortunately, most of the academic achievement gap is because of what happens in the home, and this is a place where lawmakers have been reluctant to intervene for obvious reasons. Lawmakers cannot force parents to prioritise studying or academic achievement, and while parents from certain demographics continue to show lower involvement and encouragement in their children's academic outcomes (https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110505103345.htm https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/05/110505103345.h... - data here: https://www.bls.gov/tus/ https://www.bls.gov/tus/) the gap will persist.

SyzygistSix 5y ago
Studying to pass the SAT is gaming the system if ideally we want well-rounded, whole people to be the elite leadership in the future. Not that including extracurriculars doesn't weight admissions towards the children of current elites. But the idea is that multiple metrics cancel out the biases of the individual metrics. And I understand some people are okay with elite education and others think that is itself the problem though.
- 0des 5y ago
  Well rounded and whole is an odd term. Can you explain that another way? Everyone who becomes sufficiently specialized and proficient in one thing is limited in the breadth of their experiences due to their metaphorical 10,000 hours being spent somewhere else (study).
  - SyzygistSix 5y ago
    Since Harvard is undoubtedly where so many future leaders come from (perhaps another entirely different problem), a better description might be leadership qualities.
    - cuteboy19 5y ago
      And according to Harvard, Asians conveniently score lower personality scores.
      - 0des 5y ago
        Learning how such a thing is calculated would be interesting.