SAT numbers... 8.31.2007 |
I recently did an article about SAT performance in the county. Things have changed since I took the SAT. A new writing section has been added and 1600 is no longer a perfect score. The test, has been criticized as being biased...
Example: A famous example of alleged bias in the SAT I is the oarsman-regatta analogy question.The object of the question was to find the pair of terms that have the relationship most similar to the relationship between "runner" and "marathon". The correct answer was "oarsman" and "regatta".
The question relied upon students knowing the meaning of the two terms, referring to a sport popular with the wealthy. While 53% of white students correctly answered the question, only 22% of black students did. Analogy questions have since been replaced by short reading passages. However, gaps in scoring between black students and white students persist. - Wiki
But one of my favorite parts about the new SAT is the fact that the writing portion is scored not on factual accuracy but on the flow of writing. I could write the earth was flat and as long as I punctated properly, I could get a decent score.
All in all, I think county schools did well. All together they prepared hundreds of students to do well on the SAT. Any student who wanted to take it got to take it, so the numbers reflect an entire population of demographics.
Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy, our local charter school, had a better average score than any of the high schools -- but hey, they only had to prepare 15 students. And while their scores are impressive...I am more impressed with the fact that so many students from N.C. actually took the test this year. Behind all these averages and numbers are students working hard to do well in school, parents supporting their quest and teachers arming them with the tools they need to get it done.
Example: A famous example of alleged bias in the SAT I is the oarsman-regatta analogy question.The object of the question was to find the pair of terms that have the relationship most similar to the relationship between "runner" and "marathon". The correct answer was "oarsman" and "regatta".
The question relied upon students knowing the meaning of the two terms, referring to a sport popular with the wealthy. While 53% of white students correctly answered the question, only 22% of black students did. Analogy questions have since been replaced by short reading passages. However, gaps in scoring between black students and white students persist. - Wiki
But one of my favorite parts about the new SAT is the fact that the writing portion is scored not on factual accuracy but on the flow of writing. I could write the earth was flat and as long as I punctated properly, I could get a decent score.
All in all, I think county schools did well. All together they prepared hundreds of students to do well on the SAT. Any student who wanted to take it got to take it, so the numbers reflect an entire population of demographics.
Thomas Jefferson Classical Academy, our local charter school, had a better average score than any of the high schools -- but hey, they only had to prepare 15 students. And while their scores are impressive...I am more impressed with the fact that so many students from N.C. actually took the test this year. Behind all these averages and numbers are students working hard to do well in school, parents supporting their quest and teachers arming them with the tools they need to get it done.
