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SAT SAT stands for Scholastic Assessment Test. This test is used to predict the facility with which the individual will progress in learning academic school subjects. An aptitude test is a test for determining the probability of a person's success in some activity in which he is not yet trained. The definitions given above tell what the SAT is, and what it does. SAT is the main test required when one is to apply for college or university studies after school.
Overall, the SAT is a long, grueling test that tends to cause mostly anxiety among the test-takers. The SAT is a three hour-long test including two ten-minute breaks after Section Two and Section Four. The SAT is divided into 7 sections, which can appear in any order in seven months of the year. The SAT is scored on a scale up to 1600, where you can gain a point for a correct answer, but lose a fraction of a point for an incorrect answer.
You neither gain nor lose points for omitting a question. Also included in your score is an automatic 200 points on both your Math and Verbal sections. Additionally, at least a C on the SAT is equivalent to an 1100 on the test. The SAT is administered by in a students high school years, but anybody can sign up to take the test. Today many students believe that the SAT is not an accurate view of how a student will succeed or perform at college level. Students also agreed that colleges should not consider SAT scores for admission, and the standardized approach to the results must be abolished.
In August of 1996 the College Board announced that they are to review and lower the standards for the scores. The explanation is that modern students will never be able to receive high grades like their parents did in their times, therefore there is a need to adjust the scoring for presentation and analysis purposes. The existent situation serves as a good proof that tests oftentimes give quite subjective results. The following question may arise: does the SAT really test aptitude? According to some experts on the topic, even though the word aptitude appears in the acronym, the test itself has hardly anything to do with aptitude at all.
The test is now more likely correlated with an intelligence test and an achievement test. This is giving an overall statement that no test can possibly show that it is a valid test. But, even if the test did show worthiness to the effectiveness of it's proclaimed predictions, it would still be unable to predict the future outcome of the students GPA as a college student. If the SAT could predict such a thing, then there would be predictive validity shown by the scores of the tests.
Predictive validity is the validation of Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) scores as a measure of academic ability by their correlation with subsequent student grade-point averages. The SAT can be a somewhat decent predictor of college outcome, but not the best when used solely. If the SAT's are not considered an aptitude test anymore, then why place so much emphasis on doing well on them? The reason being is that many colleges take into consideration the score that the student has received on the SAT as part of their entrance examination. The colleges should not take such a drastic look at the SAT's, and should pay more attention to the grades that the student had received in high school. When used in combination with other factors, the SAT then becomes a useful aid for college entrance acceptance.
Besides regular SAT there is also a specialized SAT (SAT II), which is created especially for people who excel in some particular subject and want to continue their education in this field. In order to take SAT II, the students knowledge of the subject tested must be above average level. For admission purposes colleges also use SAT II, however, the student should first contact the acceptance office for more information. Reference: SAT. web November 21, 2003. The Key to Admission.
web November 21, 2003. Lowering Scholastic Test Standards. web November 21, 2003.
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Research essay sample on Sat Scores November 21
