Colleges Reliance on Standardized Testing Scores for Admission

Many colleges around the world require a certain criteria on standardized test scores in order for being admitted to that particular school. These standardized tests often test a students ability on their literacy, numeracy, and writing skills, which allow a college to know where the students are in there level of education. The topic is sometimes heavily debated on whether or not these test scores show how a student will succeed in the college setting.

A standardized test score is not able to measure a person and their ability to do well in school. The human mind is simply too complex that measuring it with only one test score is sometimes not a reliable source. Other factors are sometimes needed to be more carefully considered such as students GPAs, extra curricular activities, or writing a college admission letter showing their intelligence, and much more beyond a single test score. Research works discovered that first-year College Cumulative GPA is the most common and reliable source in determining the successfulness of a student in the college environment (Takele). Standardized testing is not able to test emotional or mechanical intelligence. It is sometimes said that it is only able able to measure memorization and not actual intelligence or comprehension.

Standardized tests are all structured very similarly. Most test contain around 50 questions per section. It may be difficult to get a accurate result knowing that only 50 questions were asked on 12 years of learning and information. The test is not able to measure all the information and skills that students have been taught over the years of schooling. GPA is able to obtain the knowledge and success of students quite effectively. There is research findings which disclose the contribution of high school GPA in predicting college performance more effective than college entrance test scores (Takele). If the student is taught that only the score matters and not the generalized information in can put the students in a difficult situation to succeed.

A large fault that is found in standardized testing in the inconsistency of scores. Students are typically allowed to take these test more than one time. In most cases students would score higher each time, but a study had shown that 22 percent of students who took the ACT decreased their score. This shows that there is an array of results that students can receive. Also the type of gender you are has correlation, most commonly is the science subject. Some tests may be harder the first time then the second; therefore making it unreliable in some situations. Trying to obtain a better score then the previous ones taken is the ultimate goal. This can sometimes test a students ability to prepare for standardized test rather than the generalized content of what students actually need to know.

Among some of the negative effects in standard testing, there are many positives to it as well. Standardized testing allows students to get an idea where they are at in terms of readiness and general knowledge in things they have learned over there high school careers. Testing students on these topic spans over a large amount of time on which they have gained this knowledge, and that's why it is one of the few ways to fairly judge where a students skill and knowledge lies. The standardized test are very objective for which students have similar questions, work in like environments, and are graded in a unbiased way.

Cite this page