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| SAT (Scholastic Assessment Test) | |
|---|---|
| Name | SAT |
| Purpose | College admissions testing |
| Administered by | College Board |
| First test | 1926 |
| Regions | United States and worldwide |
SAT (Scholastic Assessment Test) is a standardized examination used for undergraduate admissions in the United States and by some institutions internationally. It was created to provide a common measure for comparing applicants from diverse backgrounds and has been linked to changes in testing policy, institutional admissions, and secondary schooling practices.
The test originated in 1926 when College Board collaborated with researchers associated with Princeton University, Harvard University, Yale University, University of Chicago and foundations such as Carnegie Corporation and Rockefeller Foundation to adopt methods influenced by intelligence testing from Alfred Binet and contemporaries like Lewis Terman and Edward Thorndike. During the mid-20th century, reforms tied to GI Bill beneficiaries, veterans returning from World War II, and expansion of public universities such as University of California shaped administration and uptake. In the 1960s and 1970s, critiques from civil rights advocates connected to Martin Luther King Jr. and legal cases such as those involving Brown v. Board of Education and policies at institutions like University of Michigan influenced debates about bias and fairness. Later, organizations including American Educational Research Association, National Education Association, and researchers at Stanford University, Columbia University, University of Pennsylvania and Princeton University contributed studies prompting College Board revisions in the 1990s and 2000s. High-profile changes coincided with initiatives led by leaders from College Board and responses to policy shifts under administrations such as Barack Obama and court rulings involving Supreme Court of the United States.
The modern test has evolved across editions involving formats revised in years associated with policy efforts at College Board, research from Educational Testing Service collaborators, and input from scholars at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, University of California, Berkeley, Yale University, Brown University and University of Chicago. Typical sections reference skills emphasized in curricula at secondary schools like Stuyvesant High School, Phillips Exeter Academy, Bronx High School of Science, and assessments aligned to frameworks influenced by standards set in states such as California, New York (state), and Texas. Content domains draw on passages or problems comparable to texts by authors or figures studied in secondary literature programs mentioning William Shakespeare, Mark Twain, Maya Angelou, Homer (poet), Charles Dickens and mathematicians associated with institutions like Princeton University and Harvard University; quantitative items mirror problem types from curricula used at Massachusetts Institute of Technology feeder schools and preparatory programs run by organizations such as Khan Academy, Princeton Review, Kaplan, Inc., and Johns Hopkins University outreach. Recent iterations include multiple-choice reading and writing tasks, evidence-based reading items, command of arithmetic and algebraic concepts, and previously included an optional essay component debated in panels at Columbia Law School, Harvard Law School, and Yale Law School.
Scores have historically been reported on scales reviewed by psychometricians from Educational Testing Service, American Psychological Association, Stanford University and College Board committees. Reporting practices mirror protocols used at admissions offices of Harvard University, Yale University, Princeton University, University of California campuses, University of Michigan, and liberal arts colleges such as Williams College and Amherst College. Statistical procedures reference reliability and validity frameworks discussed in venues like conferences hosted by American Educational Research Association and journals affiliated with Columbia University and University of Chicago faculties. Score send policies involve institutions including Common Application, Coalition for College, and specific campuses like University of Pennsylvania and Columbia University which set thresholds and superscoring rules affecting applicants from high schools such as Horace Mann School and Lowell High School.
Preparation industries and resources have been shaped by companies and institutions such as Khan Academy, Princeton Review, Kaplan, Inc., Naval Academy Preparatory School, and university outreach programs at Johns Hopkins University, Duke University, and Stanford University. Test-taking strategies are taught in programs run by organizations like Boys Town, nonprofit efforts linked to Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and summer institutes at schools like Phillips Exeter Academy and Phillips Andover Academy. Strategies often reference time management techniques discussed in study guides published by authors with affiliations to Columbia University, University of Chicago, Harvard University and workshops hosted by admissions counselors from Brown University and Cornell University.
Administration is overseen by College Board with coordination from regional test centers located at institutions including New York University, University of California, Los Angeles, University of Texas at Austin, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, and international sites collaborating with consulates and cultural centers in cities such as London, Paris, Tokyo, Shanghai, and Dubai. Eligibility criteria intersect with policies at secondary institutions like International Baccalaureate, Advanced Placement programs, and guidance from counselors at Saint Paul's School and Georgetown Preparatory School. Test dates, registration procedures, and accommodations often follow guidelines influenced by rulings from bodies such as Department of Justice (United States) and advocacy groups associated with National Association for College Admission Counseling.
Critiques have been raised by civil rights organizations including NAACP, research centers at Harvard University, University of Chicago, and legal challenges heard before the Supreme Court of the United States and federal courts concerning disparate impact on applicants from communities represented in studies at Howard University, Spelman College, Morehouse College, and policy analyses by think tanks like Brookings Institution and Pew Research Center. Critics point to disparities highlighted in reports involving states such as Mississippi, Alabama, and California and to admissions debates at universities like University of California, Harvard University, Yale University and litigation involving firms and parties linked to Students for Fair Admissions. Discussions include fairness, test-optional policies adopted by institutions such as Northeastern University, Wake Forest University, Bowdoin College and shifts in practice during events like the COVID-19 pandemic.
The test has influenced admissions strategies at flagship universities such as University of California, University of Michigan, Harvard University, Yale University, Princeton University and liberal arts colleges like Amherst College and Williams College, and contributed to policy debates in legislatures of states including California Legislature, New York State Assembly, and commissions advising the U.S. Department of Education. Its role interacts with programs and awards such as National Merit Scholarship Program, affiliations with Advanced Placement results, and institutional practices at consortia like Ivy League, Big Ten Conference universities, and the Association of American Universities. Changes to its use have been propelled by research from centers at Brookings Institution, Urban Institute, and faculty at Stanford University and Harvard University examining socioeconomic and demographic effects.
Category:Standardized tests