An academic study released last summer by the group Opportunity Insights, covering the so-called Ivy Plus colleges (the eight in the Ivy League, along with Duke, M.I.T., Stanford and the University of Chicago), showed little relationship between high school grade point average and success in college. The researchers found a strong relationship between test scores and later success.

 

Likewise, a faculty committee at the University of California system — led by Dr. Henry Sánchez, a pathologist, and Eddie Comeaux, a professor of education — concluded in 2020 that test scores were better than high school grades at predicting student success in the system’s nine colleges, where more than 230,000 undergraduates are enrolled. The relative advantage of test scores has grown over time, the committee found.

 

“Test scores have vastly more predictive power than is commonly understood in the popular debate,” said John Friedman, an economics professor at Brown and one of the authors of the Ivy Plus admissions study.

…

 

Without test scores, Schmill, [the dean of admissions at M.I.T., one of the few schools to have reinstated its test requirement], explained, admissions officers were left with two unappealing options. They would have to guess which students were likely to do well at M.I.T. — and almost certainly guess wrong sometimes, rejecting qualified applicants while admitting weaker ones. Or M.I.T. would need to reject more students from less advantaged high schools and admit more from the private schools and advantaged public schools that have a strong record of producing well-qualified students.

 

“When you don’t have test scores, the students who suffer most are those with high grades at relatively unknown high schools, the kind that rarely send kids to the Ivy League,” Deming, a Harvard economist, said. “The SAT is their lifeline.”

The data demonstrate that standardized tests are effective at identifying ability. However, the National Test Prep Association (NTPA) likes to highlight that these tests also uncover an underdiscussed but equally important quality: students’ willingness to invest in their abilities. Every test prep professional can attest to the effect of hard work and dedication on test improvement. Conversely, students who don’t take studying for these tests seriously show only marginal improvement. However, the usefulness of standardized tests in measuring hard work and dedication becomes limited in a test-optional environment. When students are told that withholding their test scores won’t adversely affect their admissions chances, they make the logical decision to disengage when faced with challenges or setbacks while preparing for the tests. It is for this reason the NTPA encourages educators and admissions professionals to emphasize that standardized tests can instead reveal a trait of equal value to natural ability: one’s ability to achieve results through their hard work and determination.

The post The NTPA Weighs In: An Overlooked Reason Why Standardized Tests Predict College Success appeared first on National Test Prep Association.

It’s been another busy month in test preparation and higher education! Below are some of the news articles that got the NTPA members talking. We hope you’ll join the conversation in the comments.

A Test for the Test Makers (Education Next):

“This state of affairs follows years of complaints that the exams favor the affluent. And, in fact, both of the notoriously secretive testing companies face significant problems, including some not widely understood. Reports of their demise, however, may be premature.”

Taking the SAT with the Breakout Expert from Operation Varsity Blues (Educational Endeavors):

“I find that the entire formatting of the Writing Test requires getting used to, from questions that have no actual question (just choices) to questions that ask users to do a really specific random thing. This is one of the reasons that preparation for these tests is crucial in order to maximize your performance. “

Can College Predictive Models Survive the Pandemic? (EdSurge):

“As we develop new predictive models and update the existing ones with data collected in the last year, we will need to analyze its effects and decide how heavily to weigh that data when trying to predict what comes next.”

The Endless Sensation of Application Inflation (The Chronicle of Higher Education):

“But what do such metrics really tell us? What, if anything, does the annual OMG-ing over these statistics add to up to?”

Bring back standardized tests — for fairness (The Hill):

“With the elimination of standardized tests, admissions policies have become more subjective and less transparent — in short, less fair.”

Opinion: COVID has made getting into a top U.S. college even more competitive and this new normal looks here to stay (MarketWatch):

“Clearly the effect on the applicant pool was fantastic — really, really exciting. But how well were we able to identify academic talent and measure academic preparation? How well are students going to do once they enroll at Emory? That is unknown.”

From admissions to teaching to grading, AI is infiltrating higher education (Hechinger Report):

“Baylor, Boston and Wake Forest universities are among those that have used the Canadian company Kira Talent, which offers a review system that can score an applicant’s ‘personality traits and soft skills’ based on a recorded, AI-reviewed video the student submits. A company presentation shows students being scored on a five-point scale in areas such as openness, motivation, agreeableness and ‘neuroticism.'”

The post In the News (April 2021) appeared first on National Test Prep Association.

Using Market Research to Shape the Assessment Landscape: What We Know About COVID-19’s Effect on Test Optional (ACT.org):

“The research suggests that rapid test blind expansion is quite unlikely. Schools regard test score data as too useful to abandon altogether, and they report that they feel students should be allowed to submit test scores if they wish to do so.”

Not Submitting Scores (Inside Higher Ed):

“While I believe that the über-selective colleges that became test optional in response to COVID will return to requiring the tests, most colleges will remain test optional,” Massa said.

NPR/Ipsos Poll: Nearly One-Third Of Parents May Stick With Remote Learning (NPR):

“On the other hand, fully 29% of parents told us they were likely to stick with remote learning indefinitely. That included about half of the parents who are currently enrolled in remote learning.”

Don’t Blame the Tests: Getting Rid of Standardized Testing Means Punishing Poor Students (USA Today Op Ed):

“No, a student’s SAT or GPA is not the only thing that matters. Character, leadership and kindness matter far more in life. But just because a test doesn’t tell us everything about a person doesn’t mean it is useless.”

  This American Life podcast: “The College Tour has been Cancelled”:

“They’re not applying to schools, falling through the cracks, ghosting their counselors who can’t just grab them in the hallway or pull them from class this year.”

The post In the News (March 2021) appeared first on National Test Prep Association.

What does college readiness mean? On some levels, readiness manifests as the emotional maturity and independence to thrive in a new, less-restrictive environment. Readiness also encompasses the intrinsic motivation to attend classes, complete assignments, and meet commitments without parental guidance. But one fundamental component of college readiness comes down to academic ability: is a student prepared for college-level work?

Traditionally, grades have been used to assess college readiness. After all, if a student passes every class in high school, college success seems assured. In reality, far too many students show up for college with deficient math and/or writing skills and have to take no-credit remedial courses before being allowed to fulfill core requirements. How many is too many? According to the report, Remediation: Higher Education’s Bridge to Nowhere, more than 50 percent of students entering two-year colleges and nearly 20 percent of those entering four-year universities are placed in remedial classes. (3) An alarming number of these students drop out before completing their degrees: fewer than 1 in 10 graduate from community colleges within three years and little more than a third complete bachelor’s degrees in six years.

In fact, the value of grades as predictors of objective academic ability has been dwindling rapidly, even before a global pandemic forced most schools into remote teaching models in which students faced uneven modes of learning and grading standards. Seth Gershenson’s groundbreaking report on Grade Inflation in High Schools (2005–2016) concluded that two-thirds of U.S. teenagers are ill-prepared for college when they leave high school despite high grades, which are often more inflated in schools attended by affluent students than in those attended by lower-income pupils. (4)

No wonder so many studies report that standardized tests and grades together often provide better predictions of college success than class grades alone. In addition, the two leading U.S. college entrance exams also serve as valuable research-supported assessments of college readiness.

SAT College and Career Readiness Benchmarks help students and educators assess student progress toward college readiness from year to year. Students with an SAT Math section score that meets or exceeds the benchmark have a 75% chance of earning at least a C in first-semester, credit-bearing college courses in algebra, statistics, pre-calculus, or calculus. Students with an SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing (EBRW) section score that meets or exceeds the benchmark have a 75% chance of earning at least a C in first-semester, credit-bearing college courses in history, literature, social sciences, or writing classes. Students are considered college- and career-ready when their SAT section scores meet both the Math and the Evidence-Based Reading and Writing benchmarks. (5)

ACT provides even more guidance about college readiness, establishing the minimum scores in each section of the ACT associated with a 50% chance of earning a B or better and approximately a 75% chance of earning a C or better in a suite of college courses including introductory English Composition, College Algebra, Social Studies, and Biology. (6) Interestingly–or perhaps disappointingly–the percentage of students meeting at least three of the four ACT College Readiness Benchmarks in 2019 was only 37%, down from 38% in 2018.

Test scores are no guarantees of college success, but they provide more clarity and objective certainty than any single classroom test can hope to offer. Exams like the ACT and SAT are carefully calibrated to align with academic standards across all 50 states as well as the educational priorities of our nation’s colleges and universities. For this reason, their score data should be an essential element in answering that fundamental question of college readiness. The consequences of pursuing higher education without the fundamental reading, writing, and quantitative skills needed to succeed can be both emotionally and economically disastrous.

1. 10 Benefits of Having a College Degree
2. Measuring the value of education
3. Remediation: Higher Education’s Bridge to Nowhere
4. Grade Inflation in High Schools (2005–2016)
5. SAT Suite of Assessments’ College and Career Readiness Benchmarks
6. ACT College and Career Readiness Benchmarks

A nationally recognized leader in test prep, Mike Bergin founded Chariot Learning in Rochester, NY in 2009 to deliver on the promise of what truly transformative, individualized education can and should be. Mike is also the founder of the free testing and admissions answer site TestBright, co-host of the Tests and the Rest college admissions industry podcast and conference series, and creator of the Facebook industry group for test prep professionals, Test Prep Tribe. Mike is the President of the NTPA Board of Directors.

The post How Do You Know If You Are Ready for College? appeared first on National Test Prep Association.

Can Colleges Make Students Get Covid Vaccine? Here’s What Experts Say

“[G]iven current vaccine prioritization protocols, when college students can expect access to the vaccine currently depends heavily on their geography. Welner says he has heard some college students in Colorado may have access as early as March. Whereas in New York, young adults without underlying medical conditions will likely not have access until the summer.”

Early-Decision, Early-Action Decisions Fall

“What’s going on? In part, it is another piece of the picture in admissions this year, in which colleges that are wealthy and that serve many wealthy students are doing well. And other colleges are not.”

Merit and Equity for 4-Year College Enrollments

“Without formal notice, we are losing one of the most important measures used to examine equity in college access.”

Yale is Offering Its Popular Happiness Course to Some High School Students for Free– Including College Credit

““Our goal is to equip students with scientifically validated strategies for living a more satisfying life, while also creating opportunities for high-striving low-income students and students of color to demonstrate college-readiness,” explained Santos, professor of psychology and head of Silliman College at Yale.”

The post In the News (February 2021) appeared first on National Test Prep Association.