FEBRUARY 12, 2016
CJN.ORG | CLEVELAND JEWISH NEWS | 27
EDUCATION
TESTING STUDENTS’ KNOWLEDGE ACT, SAT more than letters, numbers for high schoolers ED WITTENBERG | STAFF REPORTER ewittenberg@cjn.org
T
he ACT or SAT – which one should high school students take as they seek admission to colleges? Meghann Sullivan, a guidance counselor at Beachwood High School, said counselors at the school typically recommend that students take the standardized test on Johns which they feel they are likely to have more success. “Historically, students in the Midwest are more likely to take the ACT versus students on the coasts, where the SAT is more dominant,” she said. “But Sullivan most colleges will give equal weight to either test.” Anne Johns, director of guidance at Solon High School, said since a new version of the SAT will be launched in March, counselors there are encouraging students to take both the SAT and ACT at least once this spring and-or summer. “Then we will look at their results to see which of the tests the students will likely perform better on and advise them accordingly in terms of sitting for a test a second time,” she said. “Colleges across the country are accepting both; however, students need to look at the admissions criteria to determine if the college is asking for SAT II Subject tests.” The SAT, originally called the Scholastic Aptitude Test, was once the nation’s dominant college admission exam. But it fell behind the ACT – initially an abbreviation for American College Testing – in recent years as more students realized that top colleges and universities would accept either test. Now the SAT’s owner, the College
Board, has mounted a comeback in its bid to regain supremacy, as a new version of the test is set to debut March 5. “The reason the ACT became so dominant was because it was primarily an achievement test as compared to the SAT, which was an aptitude test,” Johns said. “The student who works hard in the classroom and achieves well – yet might not have as strong innate intelligence – would tend to perform better on the ACT than they would on the SAT.” REDESIGN ‘BRIDGING THE GAP’ Sullivan said it’s difficult to compare the two tests, mainly because the redesigned SAT has not been offered yet. “Prior to the redesign of the SAT, there were a number of differences in the content and structure of the two tests, but the redesign seems to be bridging the gap between the two,” Sullivan said. “For example, historically the SAT has had a guessing penalty while the ACT has not, but that penalty is going away with the redesign. “Also the ‘old’ version of the SAT includes more advanced vocabulary, but the redesign is doing away with ‘tier three’ vocabulary, which tends to be very technical and even obscure, in favor of more contextual vocabulary that students are likely to encounter in a college classroom.” The current SAT has a maximum score of 2,400 points – 800 for each of three sections: critical reading, math and writing. The redesigned SAT will return to a maximum of 1,600 points, with an optional separate writing score. The maximum ACT score is 36, also with an optional separate writing score. Johns and Sullivan agreed the redesigned SAT will likely have an impact on the number of students who take the test. “Since the SAT is becoming more achievement oriented and more like the ACT, the hard-working student will likely do well,” Johns said. “Our current results of the fall PSAT provide evidence of that. Our students performed better than usual on this year’s PSAT, and we will likely have an increased number of potential National Merit Scholars.”
Sullivan said if students perform well on the redesigned PSAT and SAT, there will likely be an increase in students taking the SAT. “In an effort to make income less of a barrier for college-going students, College Board is also offering comprehensive free test prep through Khan Academy,” she said, “as well as a mobile app which may make this test an even more attractive option for students and families who cannot or do not want to spend a lot of money on test prep.” Khan Academy is a nonprofit educational organization created in 2006 by educator Salman Khan with the aim of providing a free, world-class education for anyone, anywhere. It produces short lectures in the form of YouTube videos. PENDULUM SWINGS BOTH WAYS Johns, who has been a counselor at Solon City Schools for more than 20 years, said she has seen the pendulum swing both ways as far as which test Solon students take. “Back in the ‘90s, students were taking the SAT primarily when applying to the East and West coast schools and the ACT for Midwest schools,” she said. “Then it became more balanced as colleges across the country were promoting the fact that they would accept either of these tests. “Then, since students seemed to perform better on the ACT, that test became the most popular. Now, with the new version of the SAT looking more like the ACT, I would predict that the pendulum will swing back to students taking both.” Sullivan, in her second year at Beachwood High School, noted in the school’s past graduating class of 113 students, 100 took the ACT and only 28 took the SAT. “Most likely one of the biggest factors in this disparity is the regional preference toward the ACT,” she said. Johns said parents who have children who need to take one or both of these tests for college admission should take advantage of the test prep opportunities available on the ACT and College Board websites.
ACT VS. SAT: A COMPARISON
• The ACT measures achievement related to high school curricula, while the SAT measures general verbal and quantitative reasoning. (Source: act.com) • The ACT was launched in 1959, the SAT in 1926. • Maximum score on the ACT is 36, while the SAT’s maximum score is 1,600. (as of March 5) • About 1.9 million students in the class of 2015 took the ACT nationally, compared to about 1.7 million who took the SAT. (Source: The Washington Post) • Members of minority groups score better across the board on the SAT than the ACT. (Source: The New York Times)
“They provide a wealth of free help,” she said. “Also many of our local libraries are providing test prep assistance, and there are plenty of private tutors who can focus on an individual student’s weaknesses to help improve their potential for success. “Also, if your child has documented disabilities, make sure you apply well in advance for accommodations.” Sullivan said Beachwood counselors encourage students to take the ACT and-or SAT at least once during their junior year so they can receive a score and, if necessary, do some test preparation before taking it again later that year or early in the senior year. “There are many test prep resources available; some are free, while others will charge a fee,” she said. “At BHS we offer an online program called Shmoop at no cost to our students, and there are other test prep programs and services available online (and through other sources). “We work with students during their junior year to explore prospective colleges and review admissions criteria to help determine a target score range.”