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A prominent researcher noted that the following question was tested by the ETS but never made it onto the SAT: The actor's bearing on stage seemed ______; her
by crackercrews 5y ago
A prominent researcher noted that the following question was tested by the ETS but never made it onto the SAT:
The actor's bearing on stage seemed ______; her movements were natural and her technique _____
A. unremitting...blasé
B. fluid...tentative
C. unstudied...contrived
D. eclectic...uniform
E. grandiose...controlled
Apparently 8% more black students answered this question correctly than white students, and it was never moved from a potential question into the real test. The allegation is that the racial outcome of the question is the cause of its never making it onto the SAT.
I think it never made it because the question is bad. None of the answers makes much sense (the correct answer is apparently C).
1: http://www.jayrosner.com/publication-onwhitepreferences.html http://www.jayrosner.com/publication-onwhitepreferences.html
- wolverine876 5y agoTo be clear, the thesis of the article you quoted from is the following: Every single question carefully preselected to appear on the test favors whites over blacks.
- throwuxiytayq 5y agoAs a non-American, this thesis simply doesn't pass the smell test unless you guys are living in literal KKK land, which - from be outside - doesn't seem to be the case.
- wolverine876 5y agoWhy not read the research? A 'smell test', especially by someone with no experience or expertise, doesn't indicate much. Any claim of racism - even raised by an expert who has done detailed research, in a society with overwhelming evidence of it historically and now, and in higher education admissions in particular - is always dismissed.
- mrjangles 5y agoThat made no sense so I followed your link and found that C is uncontrived not contrived, which then makes perfect sense. Every option has either 2 words that make no sense, or one word that makes no sense with "her movements were natural" and one that does. Only option C has two words which make sense with both. This question is just basic English comprehension and should be on every exam.
- crackercrews 5y agoSorry, I had seen this elsewhere and it was incorrectly transcribed. You are correct that the linked page shows "uncontrived" for C. That makes the question less bad though still a bit stilted.