February 20, 2007
Will changes in the content and administration of the SAT and ACT reduce the degree of controversy surrounding college admissions tests? “In a word: no,” according to a new paper commissioned by the National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC). “College Admission Testing,” a white paper by Dr. Rebecca Zwick, Professor of Education at the University of California, Santa Barbara, provides a summary of the history of standardized tests, the role of testing in undergraduate admission, and current research on the tests’ effectiveness in providing meaningful data to admission offices about applicant qualifications for postsecondary study.
“One important purpose of this white paper is to facilitate discussion about the role of standardized tests in undergraduate admission,” said Mary Lee Hoganson, NACAC president. “NACAC’s State of College Admission report suggests that standardized admission tests have increased in importance over the past decade, coinciding with the record number of students and applications flowing through the admission system.”
Questions and topics covered by “College Admission Testing” are some of the most consistent and difficult issues to address in an admission environment in which institutions maintain a commitment to fairness, but which is also fundamentally exclusive at the highest levels. Dr. Zwick offers provocative assessments of the admission testing landscape :
- “On the one hand, we think [selective admission] ‘has unpleasant connotations of elitism, unfairness, snobbishness and uniformity.’ On the other hand, we ‘laud excellence, recognize its scarcity and utility, and endorse admissions on the basis of merit…’
- “Testing experts have not been particularly helpful in clarifying the niche that admission tests are intended to fill, and disputes on this point have been prominent in recent debates about the fairness of the SAT.”
- “Despite the fact that these debates are unresolved, SAT and ACT scores continue to be a key factor in admission decisions at most institutions.”
- “The college admission tests of the future…are likely to be more focused on material that is taught in the classroom and on skills that clearly resemble those needed for college study.”
NACAC will also convene a Commission on the Use of Standardized Tests in Undergraduate Admission in 2007 to determine how NACAC, institutions of higher education, and other stakeholders can best address questions about the use of standardized tests as a factor in postsecondary admission. Bill Fitzsimmons, Dean of Admission and Financial Aid at Harvard University, will chair the Commission.
The paper and other testing resources are available here:
http://admin.nacacnet.org/PublicationsResources/Research/topics/ Pages/TestingandAssessment.aspx
About NACAC
NACAC is an Alexandria, VA-based education association of more than 9,800 secondary school counselors, independent counselors, college admission and financial aid officers, enrollment managers, and organizations that work with students as they make the transition from high school to postsecondary education. The association, founded in 1937, is committed to maintaining high standards that foster ethical and social responsibility among those involved in the transition process, as outlined in the NACAC Statement of Principles of Good Practice.