The SAT is Changing

The College Board announced yesterday that the SAT is undergoing a facelift, with a new version of the test to be released in 2016.  The last time the SAT changed (2005), the scoring moved from a 1600-point scale to the 2400 point scale we now know and love (or don't love).  The extra 800 points came from the new, required writing section.  So perhaps the biggest change for 2016 will be that the scoring returns to a 1600-point scale and the writing section will become optional.  A number of other changes are coming to the content of the test. 

This news comes on the heels of a recently published (and well-publicized) study by test-optional schools which reaffirms what most college counselors, college admission officers, students, and parents already suspected: high school grades are a more important predictor of your success in college than a standardized test score.  Between the push for test-optional admission (there are now 800+ schools that don't require the ACT or SAT), ACT's overtaking the SAT in popularity, and the multiple reports of bias in the SAT, one can't help but wonder if the new changes to the SAT are being made an effort to stay relevant. 

I would guess that the people most interested in the College Board's announcement are the expensive test-prep providers and tutors.  One of the complaints of the current SAT format is that a student with the resources to afford test prep can get an advantage.  A good tutor can indeed help teach effective test-taking strategy, potentially advantaging the privileged students who can afford this extra help.  The new SAT hopes to mitigate those effects by partnering with Khan Academy to offer free online prep videos.  It will be interesting to see how prep providers respond and if the online prep is actually an effective replacement for private tutoring or formal prep classes. 

I'm interested to see what the new SAT will look like and how colleges will respond.  How many will require the optional writing section?  Will colleges continue to join the list of test-optional schools, regardless of the changes?  Will students continue to flock to test prep companies?  We'll see what happens come 2016.  But in the meantime, it seems the College Board has taken some proactive steps to test the type of content high school students can be expected to learn and actually apply to their college experience.