What's your opinion of standardized tests?

Question

Do you think they're an accurate measurement of a person's intelligence? If a person consistently scores extremely well on tests, does that mean that person is very smart? And vice versa, if a person does consistently bad on tests, then they are stupid / unintelligent? Are the SAT's, AP exams, and Regents exams very good indicators of where a person is intelligence-wise?

This is something that's been bothering me for a while. I'm undecided. When my friends do badly on a standardized test, I don't think anything of it, and I go on believing that they're still an intelligent person, just that they happened to have a bad day, or that subject just isn't one of their best. I don't think any less of them. But when *I* do badly on standardized tests, it just haunts me for months... In school, I get far above average grades. Yet on every standardized test I've ever taken, I'm somewhere around average. That might be nice for any average person, but when I compare myself to my friends, who always score above average on these exams, I just feel like that means that maybe the only reason I get good grades in school is because my teachers like me and pull bonus points out of no where for me. In English especially, I've always "excelled," but then on the SAT, I only got a 520 on the reading and a 510 on the writing... I studied tons out of the SAT study guide and wrote my essay exactly in the style that is always recommended, and I felt like I delivered my point quickly and with clarity. Yet somehow when I feel like I'm doing my best in my best subject, I'm falling so short. It really scares me that this is happening, and it makes me think that there's no chance I'll survive in college with only average writing and reading comprehension.

Well, enough of this rambling. What's your opinion on standardized tests?

? · Accepted Answer

they dont measure iq, they measure college readiness.

I commend you on being willing to look at the possibility of grade inflation - that kind of emotional bravery will be of great use to you in life. And yes, grade inflation makes standardised tests a necessary evil and the worse grade inflation gets, the more colleges have to rely on a common standard to judge students by.

If you have studied a ton on your own and your scores aren't moving - get a tutor. You might be surprised how much your scores can go up if you combine that hard work with some expert guidance. The link below can help you pick a good one.

Katie · Answer

No. Standardized tests don't always measure what they claim to measure.. but it does have its pros which IMO outweigh the cons..

1. It levels the playing field for colleges. 
Some people go to rigorous high schools/prep schools where every year many people of their graduating class go to ivys like Harvard. Some people go to easier high schools where 99% end up at their state schools. At rigorous high schools, it is harder to get the GPA one can easily get at an easier school in the middle of nowhere.

2. Standardized tests aren't everything.
That's why colleges look at what you did as your extracurriculars, how you are as a person. Are you well-rounded? A person who scores well, but doesn't have a social life isn't getting into the college of his dreams either.

3. Okay. when you are talking about APs, I think those would be different tests from the SATs. SATs test critical reading, etc. while APs test how much you mastered the material. How much you practiced/memorized. If you studied for the APs, you will do well, but it's not the same for the SAT. So I would think AP tests are very fair. I also preferred the ACT when I was in high school (high school class of 2012:D)... They don't ask vague questions in the reading sections like the SAT -__- Their English and Math sections are straightforward. You either know it or you don't.  For science, everything is in the passage.

YEAH. I don't like the SATs. If you don't like it either, take ACT. OH and don't feel stupid. Use your score as your motivation to score higher the next time :)

? · Answer

My opinion of standardized tests is to give them a try.  Study hard and even though you do not get the score you wanted, be appreciative of your score and the experience.  

Also, have to remember that some people have studied for the standardized tests all their lives.  They are intelligent in the preparedness sense.  

But there are all other sorts of intelligence that you should be worried about.  Like about the intelligence that matters most to God  - being kind and fair with others, doing hard work, helping your family around the house and out of the house, etc.  That is actually a form of intelligence - when you realize that most of your learning starts in you... be appreciative of all that you have and all that you can be!  Look to the future !

Kathryn W · Answer

As Einstein once said, if you judge a fish on its ability to climb a tree, it will go through its whole life believing it is stupid.

All passing any kind of exam or test proves is that someone is good at passing tests or exams. It cannot demonstrate how well they may apply that knowledge in real life.

What's your opinion of standardized tests?

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