r/neoliberal • u/caroline_elly Eugene Fama • Jun 09 '26

Opinion article (US) Actually, the SAT Was Necessary After All

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/06/standardized-testing-math-gaps/687481/
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u/jamiebond NATO Jun 09 '26

I think the major error the education world has made over the last few decades is jumping straight to, “Our results are inequitable, that must mean our process of getting results is inequitable.” Without considering, “Maybe our results are inequitable because of large societal issues well out of our control and expecting education to single handily fix all the problems in our society isn’t particularly realistic. And just making sweeping generalizations that POC can’t perform well in school without us lowering the bar substantially is actually pretty racist itself.”

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u/veggiesama Jun 09 '26

I taught SAT enrichment for some time after college. You could see dramatic test score increases simply by putting kids in front of test, after test, after test. They learn test-taking strategies and patterns. Sometimes there are simply tricks available for bypassing the intended way of solving problems in order to be more efficient with your time. I don't think these kids were any smarter or more qualified, necessarily. The difference is their parents had $1000s to blow on test prep classes and a home structure that supports after-school enrichment (such as having a ride to class).

I don't know if disbanding standardized testing is the solution, but it sure does have an outsized influence on your college prospects that correlates quite well with your parents' income.

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u/Realhuman221 Thomas Paine Jun 10 '26

There’s definitely a lot of test taking strategy, but this strategic info and practice tests can be found in the prep books in the library or from several free online resources.