Standardized Testing Advantages

Class Location: The Internet.

Description: This class describes a scoring mishap on the October 2005 SAT's.

The idea of standardized testing is to remove subjective factors from assessment. As a result, standardized tests provide several advantages to admissions committees and others who need to evaluate and compare the people who take these tests.

The standardization of these tests ensures that test-takers are being measured objectively on the same material. The grading is standardized, so test scores are the same no matter who or what is scoring them. This removes any bias that might stem from the scorer. On the other hand, tests that use subjective grading might yield scores that vary widely depending on who is scoring them.

Standardized tests supposedly predict how well students will perform in the schools to which they’re applying. For instance, the MCAT is designed to test the skills necessary to perform well in medical school. While a good MCAT score doesn’t necessarily guarantee a successful medical school experience, studies have shown that standardized tests predict success more accurately than more subjective assessments, such as interviews. In fact, interviews have been shown to have only as much accuracy as chance in predicting a student’s success at a particular school.

Another advantage of standardized testing is that the results can be generalized and repeated, which shows a degree of validity and reliability.

An additional benefit stems from aggregation, which provides a more accurate assessment of a particular group’s skills and knowledge. One individual test-taker’s score may not indicate how well the test measures the body of knowledge it’s designed for. However, enough people take these tests so that their aggregate scores can provide useful information, because the percentage of assessment error decreases as the sample size increases.

While many people criticize standardized tests as creating a bias along a number of factors, the tests nonetheless provide a more standardized tool in comparing test-takers than many other elements that admissions committees consider when evaluating applicants.