On October 26, students had the chance to take the Scholastic Aptitude Test. The SAT provides opportunities for students to present their scores to colleges and universities when applying for admission. Academic Associate Principal Stephanie Monajami recommends all students take the SAT.
“The more practice you have with a test like the SAT, the more comfortable you’re going to be, probably the biggest thing that gets in people’s way is the timing, and learning to pace yourself through that, especially the reading passages,” Ms. Monajami said. “So I think once kids get used to it again, that it’ll be a good experience.”
The test-optional admission favors many students planning on going to college. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the accessibility of taking the SAT was varied to each individual student because of inconsistency of testing locations. Colleges stopped requiring test scores in applications making it easier to get into college without sharing SAT results.
“So I think a lot of colleges and universities went to a test-optional philosophy when COVID-19 hit, because there were a lot of limitations as far as being able to get to testing centers,” Ms. Monajami said. “Then there’s also the matter of how we missed a big chunk of schooling for a while there, so I think the universities understood that not a lot of kids were going to be able to have access to testing or do well.”
Students taking the SAT get the ability to earn scholarships even if the college or university of their choice does not require the scores for acceptance.
“There were some students who weren’t planning on taking [the SAT] before because the university didn’t require it for admission, but if they’re taking it now and doing well, they’re probably going to qualify for some scholarships that they didn’t know about,” Ms. Monajami said.
Depending on how well a student performs on the SAT, universities and colleges use the test score to place students in appropriate courses. A college gets an idea of a student’s knowledge regarding a course and whether or not they have strong or weak suits in a specific subject. Using the SAT predicts college readiness and success of a student which goes beyond a student’s grades in the course.
“A lot of scholarships that require [students] to take the SAT or ACT never really went away,” Ms. Monajami said. “Lots of the universities were still looking at those scores, and I think ultimately we’ll end up with kids going into college better prepared, or at least with a better idea of where our deficiencies are, so that we can work towards closing up those gaps.”
Scores measure the readiness of how well a student will succeed in a college course for universities and colleges considering admissions. Students who do not match the eligibility of a course get placed in lower-level courses that help build up their ability to match the regular coursework.
“There’s no pass/fail on either of those tests, but having a score in the sections of reading and writing allows a university to see how well a student would potentially do. That’s what the test is designed to measure,” Monajami said. “When they got rid of that and they were just allowing anybody who completed the coursework in high school to come in, they didn’t really have a good idea of how ready those students were. I think what they’ve noticed over the past couple of years is that the students weren’t ready.”
To junior Molly Aldridge, the SAT does not accurately depict a student’s readiness for college.
“[The SAT is] a good measurement of whether or not you’re going to do good in college or not, so it’s basically showing colleges if you’re prepared enough for them and if you’re ready for that kind of level of academic rigor,” Aldridge said.
However, Aldridge believes the SAT does not account for students who do not focus well when it comes to taking tests and that it does not reflect a person’s full potential.
“I think it downplays the accomplishments and abilities of students who are really smart but it’s not represented in their test scores,” Aldridge said. “I think when they go to apply, it’s gonna not be fair to them when they have to show this test score, whereas some other people could have better test scores but maybe their actual IQ and abilities aren’t as up to par with another person’s.”
A student could score low on the SAT, yet they could do well in the course. Colleges consider a score below the average of 1050 as a low score on the SAT while a score of 1350 includes students in the top 10%. A student could perform well on the overall course and score an A (90-100), but they don’t gain a high score when taking the test.
“I have smart friends, and I know they’re smart, they’re just bad test takers. When they take the test and it comes up as a result that doesn’t reflect great on them, I feel kind of bad for them because I know they’re smart,” Aldridge said. “But when they put down their college application, it’s not gonna reflect their full potential, and I just feel like that’s not good.”
When it comes to the SAT, Aldridge believes it does not favor her because she considers herself into the category of a smart student, yet she does not perform well when it comes to testing.
“I’m one of those people who fall under the bad test taker category. I’m good at remembering things in the moment, but over the course of my high school, I’ve forgotten certain things. And so I’m going to go and take the SAT and not going to get a great score. I just already know,” Aldridge said. “And so when I go to apply to college, and I’m involved in all these things, but they see my really bad test score, I’m scared they’re going to kind of already push me off or not even consider me just because I have a bad test score.”
Aldridge believes that the SAT should not be displayed when a student does not acquire the score that they wish because the score affects a student’s college application.
“I don’t think it’s necessary. I honestly think test scores should be optional, because if you want to, if you get a good grade, like, yeah, go ahead, display that. But if not, then I think you should have the right to keep that to yourself and only display the best possible attributes of yourself, especially when you’re applying to a college,” Aldridge said. “And that’s the whole point of the application, is just displaying the good and positive things about you. So you should be able to not have to show that.”
All students have access to take the SAT which gives them the opportunity to earn scholarships based on their scores. Ms. Monajami believes that all students should take the test even if they aren’t applying to college.
“I think every student should take [the SAT], even if you don’t plan on going to college right now, you never know the future you are going to want to do, and having those test scores in your hand provides you with opportunities,” Ms. Monajami said. “And that’s what I think every student deserves, is the opportunity to make the choice that’s best for them.”
