It’s been the bane of existence for high school students for generations — the SAT — but it could see some changes in the near future.
“The College Board has redesigned the test, which is the nation’s most widely used college admissions exam." (Via WICU)
On Wednesday the College Board, that’s the group behind the standardized test, launched blueprints for potential updates to the SAT — including sample questions and test specifications. (Via TXCN)
In a letter accompanying the announcement, the board writes:
“The changes to the SAT will distinguish it from any current admission exam. This will be the first admission exam that requires students to cite evidence in support of their understanding of texts in both reading and writing.”
“Questions would include real-world applications ... One sample question asks students to convert dollars to Indian rupees. Test takers would also have to use the findings of a political survey to answer some questions.” (Via News 10)
Specific proposed changes would include multiple choice questions with four answers instead of five, more non-fiction than fiction reading passages, a duration of three hours rather than three hours and 45 minutes, and an essay section that is optional rather than mandatory. (Via WikimediaCommons / U.S. Navy)
As Education Week reports, the test will also reportedly feature “cross-test scores” that use questions from different sections to gauge how well students performed on specific subjects.
According to College Board’s Chief of Assessment Officer, the test should more accurately determine what students actually know. Quoted by The Huffington Post, she says:
"It is our goal that the redesigned SAT reflects students' best work, not something that is separate and distinct from their work in high school but a distillation of what they've learned in high school.”
The College Board stresses that the proposed changes are just a draft and are subject to change. A new, redesigned SAT is slated to debut in 2016.
