Standardized Testing Persuasive Essay

As a Senior applying to colleges, I have taken both the ACT and SAT multiple times. And I hate them. And it's not just because I have to get up early on a Saturday morning. But whoever created these tests surely isn't a teenager who loves their sleep. But that's beside the point. In today's society, they have become too important of a factor in the college admission process. They have the potential to be the only thing that prevents one from getting into a school of their dreams. Therefore, standardized tests, including the ACT and SAT, shouldn’t be as important in the college admission process as they currently are.

Standardized tests don't allow equal opportunity for success as they favor affluent students. Those at a disadvantage include minority groups and students coming from families with low incomes. Rich students can afford to take test preparatory classes such as Kaplan or The Princeton Review. However, those not as wealthy don't have this excess money to spend on nonessential things such as test preparation. Additionally, research shows that students score an
Princeton President William Bowen stated "High school grades are a far better incremental predictor of graduation rates than are standard SAT/ACT test scores". Also, Generic national assessments of college readiness are not connected tightly enough to the state curriculum. Tests have not been tailored to state's specific curriculum and standards. Also, the ACT and SAT only test certain subjects. The ACT tests English, math, reading, and science while the SAT only tests math, reading, and writing. There are numerous subjects that aren't even covered such as foreign language and history. For someone who isn't majoring in one of these areas, how can this be a good predictor of college success? And in a society that preaches about being a well-rounded individual, why are we only testing certain