Columbia is the first Ivy League university to abandon standardized tests in the name of ‘equity.’ It's disadvantaged students like me who will suffer.
I was never good at testing, period. I got my schooling in India and studying meant memorizing text books and regurgitating in tests. I was easily distracted never could read end to end once let alone multiple times like the "smart" ones did. I'm 44, back then things were not as nuanced as they are today. There's a better recognition of different abilities. I would've thrived in an environment if someone had tried to teach me a concept, i loved to understand how things worked, instead of requiring me to memorize it.
The point I'm trying to make is we are at a point in time where we have the tools to recognize ones abilities. Instead of eliminating one type of testing why not invent ways to test ones strengths where they lie. Some squares will never fit through a circle. That, in my humble opinion, would be true equality.
Respectfully, I disagree. Test-optional policies are a smokescreen: they let colleges look woke while still doing whatever they want. And what do they do? The best evidence we have on test-optional colleges indicates that they let in score-submitters at higher rates than non-score-submitters.
There are probably a number of reasons for that:
1. Non-score-submitters probably tend to have lower scores and be less smart and so stood lower chances of admissions anyway
2. Colleges probably assume point 1 about non-score-submitters, even if it isn't true
3. Colleges have less information about non-score-submitters. They don't want to make risky bets on such kids, who might wash out and pull down their four- and six-year graduation stats, which are important in the US News rankings
For more clear-eyed, empirical, and actionable takes on college admissions, read Clarke College Insight! :)
So we're gonna have lawyers who can't read, and doctors who don't understand science. It is not the SAT holding people back. It is the cultural disdain for education by some segments of our population. My dad was the first person in his family to get a high school diploma, but expected his children to go to college at the bare minimum. He also live in the same house as we did, a contributing factor.
If a young Bari had idolized Terry Gross a little less maybe 'luxury belief' wouldn't seem noteworthy. 'Limousine liberal' has a long history on the AM dial.
So all the hard work, persistence and grind that a kid puts into maintaining a high gpa isnt an indicator of their potential performance? C students in High School that get high SATs will suddenly become academic performers in college? I bet admissions officers already bend over backwards to slot in some hopeful yet unimpressive candidates. And I bet those kids are over represented in the failed to matriculate percentages.
Agreed. If any admissions criteria should be dropped it should be essays and interviews. Those are self-evidently corrupt and unfair. GPA is also unreliable because it is not calibrated/standardized. As the author points out, the SAT (or other IQ tests) is important to to find the students with potential that circumstances has disadvantaged. I think that was the stated purpose of using the SAT in the first place. Also get rid of the allowances for extra time, the time bound nature of the test is part of what makes it an IQ test. Other standardized test specific to subject areas should also be used in place of GPAs. Also get rid of legacy admissions and athletic admissions. Create the sports teams after admissions that are pulled from the student body. People more interested in sports than academics can join club teams in their sport of interest.
I have mixed feelings about standardized tests, they cut both ways, and kids should be judged by the totality of their high school resume, including their personal narrative. But, as we see time and time again, almost everything designed for equity -- in other words race as basis -- is degrading with the opposite outcome. The sounds good and feels good crowd tell those with non-white skin that they need a pass to get through life. They don't see how that is in-and-of itself racist, completely demoralizing and sets the stage for failure.
It’s really very simple. If the results keep dropping, you have to either find a cause that’s acceptable or rid yourself of the SAT and the ACT. Well, what can be the cause? Are the kids different from past generations? Nah. Kids are kids. They (and we) are on a bell curve intellectually. Percentages of those intellectually able to do the work don’t change. Yeah, If you’re always wasted, your genetics don’t matter. But not in these numbers. So, these young adults don’t have the abilities or knowledge of past generations. Why? Ask them. But, that won’t work. These kids (except those of Asian descent) have the highest self esteem on the planet. The parents? They (yes, not all) never pushed their kids. They’ve trained their children that they’re entitled to succeed and will destroy anyone who dares hold their prince or princess to a standard. The teachers? Scared, woke and themselves poorly educated. Just check the curricula at the schools of education. You’ll retch. If the teachers insist on a standard and fail too many ‘scholars’ who do nothing, there goes the job. Would you stand fast or bend? Back to being a barista. The public schools? You don’t need me to write about modern college acceptable knowledge, attitudes, curricula and standards. The colleges and universities? Based on their ideologies they need populations that mirror the general population percentages. Based on their bloated budgets they need paying (many, by government insured loans paid directly to the schools) bodies; and the abilities of the freshmen is, naturally, irrelevant. Need I go on? Goodbye, SAT and ACT.
"The ability to effortlessly produce buzzwords and gibberish and euphemisms has become a precondition for advancement in our institutions of higher learning, which is how ambitious mediocrities have gained control."
Seems that this has become the bottom line whatever the current progressive nomenclature is applied...These days, it is DEI...My seven-plus decades in the United States has seen a marked decline in the levels of education that graduating high-school seniors show, It is appalling to think about the education levels of those that DO NOT graduate.
At what point does a complaint regarding progressivism and its fall-out become one that is taken seriously?
Great article! I am always fascinated by the commentary around standardized testing and the perspective that it discriminates against the less privileged.
While I can speak firsthand to the ability to prepare and study to do better on standardized tests like the SAT and how people with more resources can spend money on test prep classes tutors, etc... the fact of the matter is the level of education across the country varies tremendously.... the material a High School Calculus teacher covers and grades in one school can be entirely different than another teacher covering the same material in another school..... the benefit of standardized testing is it levels the playing field for everyone as it is consistent- the student in public school in Harlem is getting the same exact test as the student in private school in Beverly Hills... so with standardized testing one can better see a students true aptitude vs. looking at a GPA which has so many other factors at play... it also can help eliminate the great disparities in the quality level of the teacher themselves (THIS factor absolutely hurts students in less affluent areas)..
As for standardized test prep- you don't need to hire $1,000 tutors who can help you "game" the test (which while I agree does in fact happen- the student still has to display critical thinking skills to be able to more easily identify the incorrect answers) .... purchasing a simple SAT Test guide from the tons available on Amazon for $20-$30 can get you pretty well prepared. There are also a tremendous number of online resources as well including UWorld where you can take practice tests and it walks you through the answers) ....
I just don't get how dropping standardized test scores helps kids (it will certainly improve their admission rates I suppose, but how many of these kids are going to struggle with the academic rigor of a top-notch college?).... I look forward to seeing the graduation rate data in a few years as I would suspect (absent some of today's colleges that are giving away better grades for fears of retaliation or claims of discrimination from students) that the graduation rate %'s are going to start coming down a bit....
I was barely a "B" student. Distracting home life made it impossible to do homework or study. I had a brother that would do elaborate pacing and hand-clapping rituals for hours on end, and a mother who yelled and screamed, and a father with a temper problem.
But I did well on "IQ" style tests, such as the SAT. I scored high enough (with no studying or test preparation) to get into a good local college with a scholarship! (Plus National Merit Scholarships, and the state "Regents" scholarship). I went to school, commuting from my distracting home, while I worked, too. I graduated in 4 years with no debt, then I got a job and moved to the other side of the country, where I remain.
Today, the Left wants to destroy people like me. They want to eliminate the SAT -- a ticket for people who for some reason had weak grades but were actually college material. They want to take my hard-earned money away to "forgive" student loans for kids who spent 4 years drinking at frat parties. And they continue to shovel money into the Government Student Loan system to ensure tuitions go up and up so people like me--who can do the math--wouldn't even consider college.
It seems gifted, free-thinking nonconformists with no desire to please authority are pretty much the last people they want in elite institutions these days.
Eliminating testing and gifted education gives all of the power to authorities like teachers and administrators to measure success by how well a person intellectually conforms and is willing to go along to get along.
As the self-Sovietization of our cultural institutions continues, alternatives like The Free Press, and Substack in general, are critical in preserving true liberality and pluralism.
I wish there were more foundations to support alternative publishing, fine arts, and scholarly pursuits. Maybe such a thing would be a better investment for wealthy donors than buying Twitter or supporting political candidates.
Sixty years ago, I received a full tuition scholarship based on merit. That scholarship enabled me to have a successful career as a civil engineer, earning a six figure salary and making a significant contribution to the nation's now crumbling infrastructure. Today, as an "urban ethnic" from the working class, I would not have that opportunity. Four years of hard work in high school would have been worthless. I would have been relegated to a dead-end job with a low five figure salary.
The reference to McNamara's Morons brought back memories of my time in boot camo in 1969. We called them McNamara's Million. Because I was a college graduate, I was designated my company's Educational Petty Officer. I was supposed to tutor the slow learners so that they could pass the rests and make it out of boot camp. "Tutoring" consisted of going over the test that they were going to take the next day and giving them the answers. Even with my "tutoring" some of them couldn't pass the tests. Nevertheless, they graduated from boot camp, entered the Fleet and were given low level positions, chipping paint for four years. Most were minorities, and agitators convinced them they were the victims of racism. This caused the disciplinary problems that plagued the Fleet in the early 70s, until they served their time and were discharged. The other branches had the same problem. I wonder if this type of people now will be imposed on the military to make up for the recruiting shortfall. The progressives never learn.
I was never good at testing, period. I got my schooling in India and studying meant memorizing text books and regurgitating in tests. I was easily distracted never could read end to end once let alone multiple times like the "smart" ones did. I'm 44, back then things were not as nuanced as they are today. There's a better recognition of different abilities. I would've thrived in an environment if someone had tried to teach me a concept, i loved to understand how things worked, instead of requiring me to memorize it.
The point I'm trying to make is we are at a point in time where we have the tools to recognize ones abilities. Instead of eliminating one type of testing why not invent ways to test ones strengths where they lie. Some squares will never fit through a circle. That, in my humble opinion, would be true equality.
Respectfully, I disagree. Test-optional policies are a smokescreen: they let colleges look woke while still doing whatever they want. And what do they do? The best evidence we have on test-optional colleges indicates that they let in score-submitters at higher rates than non-score-submitters.
There are probably a number of reasons for that:
1. Non-score-submitters probably tend to have lower scores and be less smart and so stood lower chances of admissions anyway
2. Colleges probably assume point 1 about non-score-submitters, even if it isn't true
3. Colleges have less information about non-score-submitters. They don't want to make risky bets on such kids, who might wash out and pull down their four- and six-year graduation stats, which are important in the US News rankings
For more clear-eyed, empirical, and actionable takes on college admissions, read Clarke College Insight! :)
So we're gonna have lawyers who can't read, and doctors who don't understand science. It is not the SAT holding people back. It is the cultural disdain for education by some segments of our population. My dad was the first person in his family to get a high school diploma, but expected his children to go to college at the bare minimum. He also live in the same house as we did, a contributing factor.
are you sure about that? its Milley's military no - wouldn't surprise me in the least to see ASVAB gutted before 2024
If a young Bari had idolized Terry Gross a little less maybe 'luxury belief' wouldn't seem noteworthy. 'Limousine liberal' has a long history on the AM dial.
I get it, you can't expect those 4.0 kids to be out on the quad throwing the frisbees. Need some fun kids to provide the ambiance.
So all the hard work, persistence and grind that a kid puts into maintaining a high gpa isnt an indicator of their potential performance? C students in High School that get high SATs will suddenly become academic performers in college? I bet admissions officers already bend over backwards to slot in some hopeful yet unimpressive candidates. And I bet those kids are over represented in the failed to matriculate percentages.
Agreed. If any admissions criteria should be dropped it should be essays and interviews. Those are self-evidently corrupt and unfair. GPA is also unreliable because it is not calibrated/standardized. As the author points out, the SAT (or other IQ tests) is important to to find the students with potential that circumstances has disadvantaged. I think that was the stated purpose of using the SAT in the first place. Also get rid of the allowances for extra time, the time bound nature of the test is part of what makes it an IQ test. Other standardized test specific to subject areas should also be used in place of GPAs. Also get rid of legacy admissions and athletic admissions. Create the sports teams after admissions that are pulled from the student body. People more interested in sports than academics can join club teams in their sport of interest.
I have mixed feelings about standardized tests, they cut both ways, and kids should be judged by the totality of their high school resume, including their personal narrative. But, as we see time and time again, almost everything designed for equity -- in other words race as basis -- is degrading with the opposite outcome. The sounds good and feels good crowd tell those with non-white skin that they need a pass to get through life. They don't see how that is in-and-of itself racist, completely demoralizing and sets the stage for failure.
In my opinion, it would be better if the phrase << "luxury belief" >>
. . . (in the sentence that says "Rob Henderson coined the term “luxury belief.” ")
were to be a hyperlink, ... pointing to the same URL
. . . ( namely, https://robkhenderson.substack.com/p/status-symbols-and-the-struggle-for )
as the one it points to where it occurs in the 'numbered list' item that says
. . . "3. The luxury belief class, who wants to keep you mired in it"
...which is the third 'numbered list' entry, under
. . . "Remember: .. If you come from poverty and chaos, you are up against three enemies:"
Just my 0.02 . . . :-) !
Mike Schwartz
It’s really very simple. If the results keep dropping, you have to either find a cause that’s acceptable or rid yourself of the SAT and the ACT. Well, what can be the cause? Are the kids different from past generations? Nah. Kids are kids. They (and we) are on a bell curve intellectually. Percentages of those intellectually able to do the work don’t change. Yeah, If you’re always wasted, your genetics don’t matter. But not in these numbers. So, these young adults don’t have the abilities or knowledge of past generations. Why? Ask them. But, that won’t work. These kids (except those of Asian descent) have the highest self esteem on the planet. The parents? They (yes, not all) never pushed their kids. They’ve trained their children that they’re entitled to succeed and will destroy anyone who dares hold their prince or princess to a standard. The teachers? Scared, woke and themselves poorly educated. Just check the curricula at the schools of education. You’ll retch. If the teachers insist on a standard and fail too many ‘scholars’ who do nothing, there goes the job. Would you stand fast or bend? Back to being a barista. The public schools? You don’t need me to write about modern college acceptable knowledge, attitudes, curricula and standards. The colleges and universities? Based on their ideologies they need populations that mirror the general population percentages. Based on their bloated budgets they need paying (many, by government insured loans paid directly to the schools) bodies; and the abilities of the freshmen is, naturally, irrelevant. Need I go on? Goodbye, SAT and ACT.
"The ability to effortlessly produce buzzwords and gibberish and euphemisms has become a precondition for advancement in our institutions of higher learning, which is how ambitious mediocrities have gained control."
Seems that this has become the bottom line whatever the current progressive nomenclature is applied...These days, it is DEI...My seven-plus decades in the United States has seen a marked decline in the levels of education that graduating high-school seniors show, It is appalling to think about the education levels of those that DO NOT graduate.
At what point does a complaint regarding progressivism and its fall-out become one that is taken seriously?
At some point, we should perhaps begin to
Great article! I am always fascinated by the commentary around standardized testing and the perspective that it discriminates against the less privileged.
While I can speak firsthand to the ability to prepare and study to do better on standardized tests like the SAT and how people with more resources can spend money on test prep classes tutors, etc... the fact of the matter is the level of education across the country varies tremendously.... the material a High School Calculus teacher covers and grades in one school can be entirely different than another teacher covering the same material in another school..... the benefit of standardized testing is it levels the playing field for everyone as it is consistent- the student in public school in Harlem is getting the same exact test as the student in private school in Beverly Hills... so with standardized testing one can better see a students true aptitude vs. looking at a GPA which has so many other factors at play... it also can help eliminate the great disparities in the quality level of the teacher themselves (THIS factor absolutely hurts students in less affluent areas)..
As for standardized test prep- you don't need to hire $1,000 tutors who can help you "game" the test (which while I agree does in fact happen- the student still has to display critical thinking skills to be able to more easily identify the incorrect answers) .... purchasing a simple SAT Test guide from the tons available on Amazon for $20-$30 can get you pretty well prepared. There are also a tremendous number of online resources as well including UWorld where you can take practice tests and it walks you through the answers) ....
I just don't get how dropping standardized test scores helps kids (it will certainly improve their admission rates I suppose, but how many of these kids are going to struggle with the academic rigor of a top-notch college?).... I look forward to seeing the graduation rate data in a few years as I would suspect (absent some of today's colleges that are giving away better grades for fears of retaliation or claims of discrimination from students) that the graduation rate %'s are going to start coming down a bit....
I was barely a "B" student. Distracting home life made it impossible to do homework or study. I had a brother that would do elaborate pacing and hand-clapping rituals for hours on end, and a mother who yelled and screamed, and a father with a temper problem.
But I did well on "IQ" style tests, such as the SAT. I scored high enough (with no studying or test preparation) to get into a good local college with a scholarship! (Plus National Merit Scholarships, and the state "Regents" scholarship). I went to school, commuting from my distracting home, while I worked, too. I graduated in 4 years with no debt, then I got a job and moved to the other side of the country, where I remain.
Today, the Left wants to destroy people like me. They want to eliminate the SAT -- a ticket for people who for some reason had weak grades but were actually college material. They want to take my hard-earned money away to "forgive" student loans for kids who spent 4 years drinking at frat parties. And they continue to shovel money into the Government Student Loan system to ensure tuitions go up and up so people like me--who can do the math--wouldn't even consider college.
The are truly evil people.
It seems gifted, free-thinking nonconformists with no desire to please authority are pretty much the last people they want in elite institutions these days.
Eliminating testing and gifted education gives all of the power to authorities like teachers and administrators to measure success by how well a person intellectually conforms and is willing to go along to get along.
As the self-Sovietization of our cultural institutions continues, alternatives like The Free Press, and Substack in general, are critical in preserving true liberality and pluralism.
I wish there were more foundations to support alternative publishing, fine arts, and scholarly pursuits. Maybe such a thing would be a better investment for wealthy donors than buying Twitter or supporting political candidates.
Sixty years ago, I received a full tuition scholarship based on merit. That scholarship enabled me to have a successful career as a civil engineer, earning a six figure salary and making a significant contribution to the nation's now crumbling infrastructure. Today, as an "urban ethnic" from the working class, I would not have that opportunity. Four years of hard work in high school would have been worthless. I would have been relegated to a dead-end job with a low five figure salary.
The reference to McNamara's Morons brought back memories of my time in boot camo in 1969. We called them McNamara's Million. Because I was a college graduate, I was designated my company's Educational Petty Officer. I was supposed to tutor the slow learners so that they could pass the rests and make it out of boot camp. "Tutoring" consisted of going over the test that they were going to take the next day and giving them the answers. Even with my "tutoring" some of them couldn't pass the tests. Nevertheless, they graduated from boot camp, entered the Fleet and were given low level positions, chipping paint for four years. Most were minorities, and agitators convinced them they were the victims of racism. This caused the disciplinary problems that plagued the Fleet in the early 70s, until they served their time and were discharged. The other branches had the same problem. I wonder if this type of people now will be imposed on the military to make up for the recruiting shortfall. The progressives never learn.