Posted on 08/30/2006 2:42:34 PM PDT by shrinkermd
SAT Scores See Biggest Decline Since 1975
The high-school class of 2006 suffered the biggest drop in SAT scores in more than three decades -- a development that may raise more questions about the recently revamped exam than the students who took it.
The College Board, the New York nonprofit that gives the admissions test, says scores in critical reading -- formerly known as verbal -- fell by five points to 503, out of 800 possible points. Math scores slipped two points, to 518, also out of 800 points. The combined decrease of seven points is the biggest since 1975, when there was a 16-point drop. Overall, math scores had been rising in the past decade, while reading has been relatively flat; there have been occasional small declines in either or both scores.
The scores announced yesterday were the first to fully reflect the revised test introduced in March 2005. Along with a writing section that consists of an essay and multiple-choice questions, the new test added higher-level algebra and did away with analogy questions on the reading section. Requiring nearly four hours to complete, the test has a possible score of 2,400 points, up from 1,600 points with the old 2½-hour test.
Scores on the new writing tests averaged 497 points out of 800, with females averaging 502, 11 points higher than males.
(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...
It may say more about the state of our system of education than about the test.
I find the title of your post interesting:
"SAT Scores See Biggest Decline Since 1975"
Then two posts later is the following title:
"Home-schooled students successful at A&M"
Do I need to comment further?
We need to throw more money at the problem, teach more social diversity curriculum and stop making learning so damn hard!!
This is a great way to improve affirmative action. All of a sudden, test results appear not valid enough to be considered for admission. "There must be something wrong with this year's test so we'll just have to look for other factors to admit this year's freshman class."
Test is sexist...
Males should have their score automatically increased by 11 points to make up for historical disadvantage.....
You forgot to teaching to the mediocre so students self esteem is in tact.
I would interpret your graphic as demonstrating that intelligence is at least somewhat heritable. If your parents did well in school (at least got more of it) then the probability is that you will do so too.
I would like to see the SAT scores graphed against rap sales.
I couldn't access the original article to see if it had more details, but I would offer several possible explanations.
1) Kids are getting dumber. (I don't really think this is the case. I include it for the sake of completeness and because most people, out of PC-ness, refuse to consider the most obvious explanation.)
2) Quality of education is dropping. (I strongly believe this is true.)
3) The test is too darn long and the exhaustion factor causes scores to drop. (A good possibility.)
4) Many more kids are taking the test. (Highly likely. I think far more kids are encouraged to take it than in the past. If the test used to be taken primarily by college-bound A and B students, but is now being taken by a lot of C students, then the average scores are sure to drop.)
5) The test is faulty. (Actually, I'd bet that all the test tinkering would be more likely to raise scores. They have eliminated the analogies and a lot of the tougher questions, although in some areas, I think they claim to have added a higher degree of difficulty.)
6) The change in average scores is not statistically significant. (I'd have to have a lot more data to judge this.)
What I was about to say is that Diversity is at the heart of this problem.
You left out the elephant in the room:
It's Bush's Fault!
Guess it's time to "renorm" them.
And, who's fault is it?
It appears that the lavishly-funded Bush/Kennedy "No Child Left Behind" program has failed. What a surprise for the Bushbots!
Most cognitive ability tests measure analytical-type skills - good predictors of early college and graduate school outcomes. However, people with average analytical skills can make up for it with superior creativity, high discipline, persistence, and other traits. SAT and similar tests are probably the best single indicator of early college success, but they should not stand alone.
BTW, the fellow in my PhD program with the highest GRE scores (close to the 99th %ile) took the longest in our class to complete his doctorate. He is also arguably the least successful of our class. The people who were more timely and successful (immodestly including myself) had good analytical skills, but we were also more focused, customer oriented, and common sense-oriented.
I've got a cousin who's got two children: A son and a daughter, one year apart. About 4 1/2 years ago, the son took the SATs, and aced it, a perfect store. He graduated from Stanford, and I believe he's going to be starting at the Stanford medical school this term.
His younger sister took the SATs the following year, and she aced it too! She'll be graduating from University of PA at the end of this year. I think that she's looking at going to Georgetown for her grad school.
I can't believe I'm related to kids that smart!
Mark
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