Standardized tests aren’t the problem and GPAs aren’t the answer

​As we finish this cycle of college admissions, the debate over the use of standardized tests, such as the ACT and SAT, intensifies. In recent years, there has been a growing movement towards test-optional and test-blind admissions policies, supported by anti-test advocates as well as some universities.

One of the main arguments against standardized testing is that they don’t measure anything more than how well you can take the tests. Personally I’ve seen evidence that it does much more than just that. But still, depending on who's conducting the research, the results will either favor GPA or favor test scores as being a better predictor of college success. 

Regardless of which side of the pendulum you're on, you need to understand this overall debate falls in line with what psychologist and social scientist Donald T. Campbell has observed:
 
"The more any quantitative social indicator is used for social decision-making, the more subject it will be to corruption pressures and the more apt it will be to distort and corrupt the social processes it is intended to monitor." – Campbell’s Law
 
Corruption? In the case of standardized testing, this means that students may prioritize memorizing patterns and answer choices over understanding the underlying concepts. And yes, this absolutely does happen. I see all sorts of sales pitches where someone is selling their “tips and tricks” to improve your child’s score. This emphasis on test-taking strategies undermines the value of the tests as a measure of a student’s ability to succeed in college.
 
Verdict = standardized testing is bad. High school grades are better indicators.
 
Well, not so fast. Campbell's Law suggests that overreliance on any single metric for social decision-making can lead to unintended consequences. In the context of college admissions, this means that removing standardized tests from the admissions process simply shifts the pressure to other metrics, such as grades.
 
The problem with relying more on grades is they have the same problem as overreliance on test scores. Grade inflation is very real. Don’t believe me? Well nowadays approximately 60% of high school students graduate with GPA ranging from A- to A+.  The average GPA was only 2.68 in 1990. During the same time period as GPA’s increased, standardized test scores remained steady…until recently. In the past few years standardized test scores have dropped and are hitting 30-year lows.
 
Students figure out the pattern of their high school teachers’ tests. They help each other create their own tips and tricks or study guides versus mastering the actual material being taught. Many high school teachers across our country offer test retakes. It’s impossible to know if those higher scores on the retake tests are due to an improved knowledge of the material or if it’s merely an improved knowledge the test design.
 
Another way to manipulate their GPA is by simply enrolling in honors or AP classes. Earning the same grade in an honors or AP course provides an extra boost to the GPA as well as course rigor. However, research shows that taking more than four to six AP classes does not significantly improve college success or college admissions.
 
The third reason for grade inflation stems from changes in school funding from the Federal Govt. The Every Student Succeeds Act replaced No Child Left Behind and places greater emphasis on graduation rates while also giving schools greater control on how to establish their own academic standards. As Campbell’s law predicted, the increased significance of graduation rates and GPA has increased its manipulation. More students are graduating nowadays, in fact graduating with higher GPA’s; however, they know less than ever before. We haven’t raised the bar, rather it has been lowered.
 
None of this is to undermine the value of grades and GPA as a means of assessing a student’s college readiness.  Rather this meant to encourage a truly more holistic approach. Studies show that the prediction of college success is best done, not with GPA or test scores alone, but with both of them combined. This coupled with a holistic review of both the GPA and test score in context, such as scoring a 27 on the ACT when the school average is 21 or having “only” a 3.7 unweighted GPA at a notoriously challenging school, will yield improved college success predictability.
 
Campbell’s law is a warning against an overreliance on any single metric for social decision-making. Removing the ACT and SAT from college admissions simply swings the pendulum from one extreme to another. So when one group advocates one metric over another, they need to keep reading Dr. Campbell’s research because he offers a solution:
 
“Many commentators, including myself, assume that the use of multiple indicators, all recognized as imperfect, will alleviate the problem.”

Did you know?
Our online Road to Academic Success is designed to help your child be a better student. It's not about tips and tricks on how to inflate your potential. Rather, it is designed to help you actually improve your potential.