Zavia Pittman

Opinions Writer

Many esteemed and widely recognized colleges recently announced that they would no longer require students to take the standardized tests known as ACT and SAT. Undoubtedly, the pandemic had a role in the downfall of these tests as it did with a slew of other societal customs and institutions.

However, upon further inspection, the ACT and SAT were built on a foundation of sand; the pandemic was simply a strong gust of wind that blew it away. Hopefully, all American colleges will reject them altogether. 

Maybe after learning more about the history behind the ACT and SAT, you’ll understand why I feel the way I do.

The SAT and ACT have existed since the early 1900s, with the SAT coming first. Like many things from that time, the SAT has roots in racism. Its creator, Carl Brigham, was a eugenicist and professor of Psychology at Princeton University. Before creating the SATs, he worked with the U.S. Army to create an army IQ assessment. In his spare time, he wrote articles professing the notion that America’s continued racial mixture would result in a dumber republic.

The SAT’s initial purpose was to make college more accessible, and many Ivy League colleges like Harvard adopted the test to “diversify” the student population. I say “diversify” because they weren’t really trying to make room for more people of color. Instead, they wanted to recruit predominantly white students who may not have come from the prestigious families from which places like Harvard primarily admitted.

The ACT, created by Dr. Everett Lindquist, later entered the college admissions process and was meant to test students’ competencies in the high school curriculum. The critical difference between the SAT and ACT at that time was that the SAT claimed to assess students’ innate intelligence, while the ACT tested what students should know from high school.

That may make you think it was and is better than the SAT, but less obvious racial disparities also plagued the ACT. Black and brown students still consistently scored lower on the ACT than their white and Asian counterparts. And that margin continued into the 21st century.

Many attribute these gaps in test scores to the availability of test prep, which has become a million-dollar industry in recent years. Wealthy households have the income to spend hundreds of dollars a week for tutors specializing in ACT and SAT prep. Students with lower socioeconomic backgrounds, usually Black and brown kids, don’t have the money to spend to get the extra help.

The College Board, the organization that facilitates the SAT, has defended itself by stating that it has changed the test over the years to make it more equitable. The College Board argues the gap in test scores only reflects societal issues, not problems with the test itself. In collaboration with Khan Academy, the College Board provided free test prep to students a couple of years ago as a response to the outcry regarding the test prep industry.

ACT Inc., the organization that conducts the ACT, has also changed the original test to make it supposedly more equitable and provided options for free test prep. ACT Inc. recommended that colleges consider factors outside of test scores in who they accept. To the credit of many U.S. colleges, they have taken that advice and even gone the extra mile to not require the ACT or SAT at all.

While I agree that the test scores reflect economic disparities and appreciate the organizations behind these tests trying to level the playing field, I still think both tests do little to show how ready a student is for college.

I did average on the ACT and didn’t even take the SAT, yet I am doing well in school so far. I also know many people who did well on both tests and ended up dropping out or not attending college altogether. And I don’t say that because I am judging them; I say that because it shows that these tests are often arbitrary.

There’s a lot more to college than what your test score can tell. Yes, academic potential is essential, but there are also social and emotional nuances that impact your abilities in college. In my opinion, all the ACT and SAT do is make students who are actually pretty smart feel dumb and show who could sacrifice the most time and money to pass it.