The Emergence of Standardized Testing and the Rise of Test-Optional Admissions Practices

• In Event: Measuring Success: Testing, Grades, and the Future of College Admissions

Abstract

Near the turn of the twentieth century representatives of twelve universities and three preparatory academies met and agreed upon “a plan of examination suitable as a test for admission to college,” thus ushering in the era of standardized admissions testing in college (Maryland College Entrance Exam Board, 1900). The original intent of standardized admissions testing was to offer a “practical administration of uniform entrance regulations,” or put in contemporary terms to make the college admissions process more transparent and fair (Monroe, 2011).

Today, many students, teachers, parents, and policymakers share similar sentiments. Too often, they complain middle and high school curriculum seems geared more toward students’ need to “get results” on standardized tests than their own personal growth or educational development. Perhaps nowhere is this concern more acutely focused than on the ACT and SAT, the two most popular college admissions tests. Scrutiny of standardized admissions tests is understandable – and should be welcome. What, if any, biases are associated with standardized admissions tests? What value do standardized tests add to the college admissions process? What is the proper role of standardized tests in that process? Most importantly: What can be done to make the college admissions process more transparent and fair? Many of these questions are the same as those that the 15-member board sought to address almost 120 years ago.

This paper provides an in-depth review of the state of the literature around the contemporary debate on college admissions testing. In addition, this paper will provide a detailed overview and discussion of ground-breaking research including numerous quantitative techniques from a forthcoming edited volume on testing, grades, and the future of college admission.

The research in this edited volume is among the first to offer an in-depth exploration by some of the leading authors in the standardized admissions testing community and some leading authors in the test-optional community. This paper will summarize some attempts to foster serious and robust empirical debate about the proper role of standardized admissions testing through rigorous methodological approaches. More broadly, it aims to examine the use and value of standardized tests for college admissions decisions in an era of widespread grade inflation. This paper will complement the other three papers included on this panel by providing by providing historical context, highlighting key research, and framing the debate surrounding college admissions testing.

Author

• Lynn Letukas, SAS Institute Inc.